‘Sachin, Sachin’ — the stadiums still reverberate with these chants, even after Sachin Tendulkar retired over five years ago. All thanks to one man, Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary. A face familiar to most cricket fans, the look he dons for every match makes him stand out among the crowd. With the colours of Indian flag painted on his body and ‘miss you Tendulkar’ emblazoned across his chest and on his back, Sudhir has attended every match that the men in blue have played since 2003.
Following the cricket team to Visakhapatnam, Sudhir was seen rocking the stands as India battled West Indies on Wednesday at Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy ACA–VDCA Cricket Stadium.
It all began when Sudhir, then 21 years old, had a strong desire to have a photograph clicked with his cricket idol, Sachin. In 2002, when India was supposed to face West Indies in Jamshedpur, Sudhir cycled all the way from his hometown, Muzaffarpur in Bihar. However, Sachin was not a part of the team for that match due to an injury. Finally, the day of his dreams dawned when he met Sachin for the first time on November 1, 2003, in Mumbai, during the tri-series played with Australia and New Zealand.
“I tried meeting him at the practice ground, but the guards shooed me away. I somehow discovered that Sachin sir would be at the Trident Hotel in the evening and I reached there immediately. As soon as he arrived, I tricked the bouncers and fell on his feet. That was my first encounter with him. He gave me his address and called me home,” Sudhir recalls.
A dream come true
He finally met Sachin at his residence the next day, and his dream was fulfilled. He clicked the photograph that he was waiting for over a year. That would have been the end of the story had Sachin not asked him whether he wanted to watch more matches. Then began a journey that has been well documented by media houses across the world. Sudhir is seen blowing the conch announcing the arrival of the team and waving a flag throughout the match.
“I have cycled my way to venues from India to Pakistan and Bangladesh. When I have to travel abroad for the matches it is at the behest of Sachin sir who arranges for my visa,” says the 37-year-old cricket fan.
In a country that considers cricket as a religion and Sachin as its God, Sudhir might be the most ardent devotee.
Holding the World Cup
“Of all the matched that I have attended , the one when Sachin sir let me lift the World Cup and stood beside me clapping, is the one that I will never forget,” he says as he pulls out his phone to show a picture of the moment. One can’t help but notice that his phone has Sachin’s autograph on the back cover.
However, the passion and the crazy love for the sport came at a cost. Sudhir’s passion, which has made him the face of India’s craze for cricket, is not accepted back home. Unemployed for a long time, his parents are critical of his nomadic life and want to see him settle down in a career.
“It is unfortunate that they cannot understand my passion, I never tried explaining to them either. That is the way it is,” he says. His father has never seen him don the colours and cheer for the country, a sight that has gained him global recognition.