Cricket! This sport has
become a very important part of my life. I love watching cricket matches, be it
supporting India in a bilateral series or supporting the Chennai Super Kings in
the IPL. I have become an ardent fan of Indian cricket. I frequently go out and
play cricket. I also love to write articles on cricket. But, it has been a long
journey for me to become such a fan of cricket. Well, let me start from the
very beginning.
I didn’t know anything about
cricket until I was 9 years old. I used to think that cricket was a sport in
which there is a bat and a ball and we can hit it anywhere we want. I never
used to go out to play or even talk about cricket. Instead, I used to play
sports such as football and badminton. My grandmother used to frequently watch
cricket matches on the television, but I used to never even go into the room at
that time. In the year 2011, I heard many people frequently talking about the
Cricket World Cup. My friends at school used to discuss very frequently on that
event. I kept away from those conversations. My father is not a big cricket
fan. But, he used to follow the World Cup. Once, when I came down for playing,
I found no friend of mine playing in the park. I was surprised. After sometime,
I found a boy whom I knew, and asked him to give me the reason for that. He
told me that all of them were watching the ‘India vs Bangladesh’ match on the
television. For the first time, I came to know how much the Cricket World Cup
was followed in India! After I went back home, I found my father watching the
match. I felt tempted at seeing what all my friends were currently watching. I
went inside the room and sat with my father. The match turned out to be the
first match of the World Cup. India beat Bangladesh quite easily. The next
match played by India was against England. I didn’t follow the match too much
but still used to come in and see the score at intervals. I had begun to
understand the game and its rules. I followed the next match against Ireland. Yuvraj
Singh played very well in that match and India won the game. The next game
against Netherlands too was won easily. But, the game against South Africa was
the game which fascinated me. Even though India lost the match, it was a very
close encounter. I remember the match for Sachin Tendulkar’s blistering
century. This match boiled the interest in me for the sport. The next match was
won easily by India. India had qualified for the quarter-finals. But, they had
to play Australia. I was aware how strong a team Australia was. India was
chasing down a score of 260, and was on the verge of losing the game. But,
Yuvraj Singh once again showed his class and prompted India to the semi-finals.
The semi-final game was against arch-rivals, Pakistan, and India managed to win
that game. India was in the finals of the World Cup and was playing Sri Lanka.
My interest for the game had scaled some peaks. But, this match made it reach
Mt. Everest. India beat Sri Lanka and was crowned as World Champions. The
winning six from Dhoni will always stay in a corner of my heart. I had now
understood most of the rules of the sport. I wanted to try and play the sport.
My mother bought me a cricket bat. I and my brother used to play inside the
house itself. After sometime, we went and played with many boys in the park. We
used to put bricks on the top of each other and keep that as a stump. At the
same time, the IPL too was going on. My favourite team, Chennai Super Kings won
the IPL. I was overjoyed. I had begun to follow cricket very well.
I begun to follow all the
series India played. Soon, I gained the interest to write on cricket. At the
point of time when the thought struck me, India was touring England. India was
playing very poor cricket. But, I still wanted to try and write on that series.
I sat and started to write on the computer. Soon, I started to like doing that.
When I showed my writings to my parents, they really liked it. India lost both
the test and the ODI series badly. But, my writings proved out to be good. I
still write on any followed cricket series [which features India].
Cricket has also led me to
some memorable moments. One of them was when my grandfather took me to meet an
ex-cricketer named Sunil Valson. Even though he did not play a single match for
India, it was a big moment for me. He also gifted me a cricket bat containing
the signatures of many players.
Thus, I am still a big cricket fan, and await every match.
