Cricket is a beautiful game. Our fraternity consists of a lot of different characters. Some of them are great batsmen; some showcase their genius with the ball and in the field. Then there are the coaches, the selectors and the media. The media includes the commentators, the news and us bloggers.
To top it all are the fans. Without the spectator, a sport dwindles to nothingness. A fan is a motivated, mostly biased spectator. He is knowledgeable, passionate and supports the game/his team/favorite player through thick and thin. Even a snide remark against the same is only to quench his inner angst, he has nothing against the game/his team/favorite player.
One notch above, and we get the fanatics. A fanatic is the above paragraph on steroids. The word crazy strives to describe a fanatic’s emotions. Mostly, fanatics are biased. All countries have fanatics, some of which become legends – take the case of Abdul Jalil of Pakistan. People fondly call him Chacha. Here he is:
© Wikipedia
He has been spotted at numerous (almost all) matches that Pakistan play. Some say that he gets to watch matches for free. No one should mind, such devotion calls for a much higher remittance.
That was Abdul, now meet Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary. This man from Muzzaffarpur, Bihar, India is fond of cycling. He is also touted as the most colorful fan of Indian Cricket. A self confessed Sachin buff, Sudhir has carved out a niche for himself in a field where so few pop their heads out of the crowd.
Out of the field rather – in the stands.
© Wikipedia
Now that is what you would call a fanatic. As far as body art goes, he always goes the full hog, often staying with the person who paints him.
He has even been to Pakistan and Bangladesh to show his support. Cycling is his desired mode of transport. Truly remarkable, to understate.
Such devout admiration for ones cricket team surely deserves accolades and encouragement. So the next time you see him in the stands, do applaud, for as much as the game needs big hitters and toe crushers, the moist eyes of fanatic only will make you feel the full worth of those feats. We bow to you, Sudhir.
Here is the interesting bit. He claims that Sachin Tendulkar pays for his match tickets.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
well done sir! he is also on the cover of “if cricket is religion, sachin is god”
Yes, a certain book which adores the center of my mini library
These guys are really amazing.
Every time you see a cricket match they do come on screen and we can hear commentator talking about them…..not many peoples are that much lucky