India has something for West Indies fans to savour

lsquoAre the West Indies playingrsquo was a question crossing nineyearold Shivam Agarwalrsquos mind when he spotted a section of Caribbean fans when India came out to bat against New Zealand in the first semifinal on Wednesday Later Shivamrsquos father sat him down and made him familiar with the West Indiesrsquo dramatic fall from grace Shivam listened attentively asking questions now and then to clarifyMeanwhile a multitude of curious onlookers jestling and laughing fished their smartphones from their pockets and snapped photos one after the other as if on cue The West Indies fans unmoved kept to themselvesDonning maroon jerseys the group of six faces painted with the Indian tricolour erupted in applause each time a buoyant Virat Kohli hit over the rope A few collegegoers who seemed to take more interest in them than the match enquired as to why they were cheering for Team India ldquoWe love Indians as much as we love cricket We want India to win the World Cup No one deserves it more than themrdquo pat came the replyWatching the sport with Indians and a large group of New Zealand supporters made it even better for them All six admitted that the atmosphere felt more electric than usualI have been to an India game before But it has been nothing like it is today The bizarrely dressedup folks over there their facepaintings the drums the entertaining musichellipeverything is just wowrdquo said Allen Martinez an autism researcher from Barbados who flew down for the World Cup with his brother Joseph and his friendsThis is such a good experience I mean we get excited when we watch it on TV but there is nothing like watching a cricket match in person Joseph added who is in the country for the first timeAlso ReadA date with destiny at WankhedeJosephrsquos college friend Molly Taylor who likes to be regarded as a cricket atheist maintained that she came to watch the game only because others insisted ldquoI donrsquot understand the rules and jargon of this game honestly For me this game was just about giving them company These guys told me great things about Virat They said he plays really well So Irsquom cheering for him I hope we get to see a centuryrdquo she said Virat for that matter clearly didnrsquot disappointThere were deafening cheers from the group as the former Indian skipper moved swiftly through the 90s and chants of lsquoViraatViraatrsquo filled the airMuch to the delight of his fans from all over the world at Mumbairsquos Wankhede Kohli stitched together yet another whirlwind century proving once again how he has lifted his oneday game It was a nearchanceless knock filled with sparkling strokes and astute defense defying the Kiwi bowlers throughout the dayldquoI knew he would score big today I hadnrsquot taken a sip of water all day now I will buy myself a drink for surerdquo said Taylor eventually losing herself in the lively beats of the Punjabi dance song lsquoIshq Tera Tadpave Oh Ho Ho Horsquo by Sukhbir Unlike Molly her sisters Stephanie and Celina had a deep knowledge of the technical part of cricket although they had never been to a cricket stadium before Cricketing terms like googly and yorkers routinely peppered their speechCelina the youngest of three echoed the sentiments of many when she said ldquoI really wished we had made it to the World Cup this year They West Indies cricket team have been on a terminal decline for the past two decades and they should be doing something about it now you know India did not come this far so easily they worked hard for it They are the world beaters now they fear nothing you know Just like how we used to be decades and decades ago Things are not the same anymore you know We too as fans have lost the zeal to cheer for our team sicrdquoPerhaps no cricket team in history is as revered as the West Indies side of the 1980s The Caribbean cocktail of ferocious fast bowling and aggressive batting resonated far beyond the 22 yardsAlso ReadFandom at its finestGone are the days when the side would whitewash England and tyrannize Australia South Africa Sri Lanka Pakistan India and New Zealand Now it is the other way around they have become the lsquominnows of world cricketrsquo the lsquowhipping boysrsquo so to speak Or may I add even Zimbabwe and Bangladesh have been challenging for them to overcomeGiven all that is stacked against perhaps the wonder is not how far the side has fallen but more of how it was able to ascend such heights in the first placeYet Celina insists she will hold on to hope and optimism After several minutes of awkward silence she had her gloomy face contorted into a broad grin as Mohammed Shami finished it off for India with a sevenforldquoWe had no idea who Shami was I heard from an Indian guy that he has been brilliant in this World Cup We came here to support Virat but this team has so many matchwinners it is just crazy I wish we hadnrsquot missed their previous gamesrdquo said CelinaAllen who took pride in knowing all Indian players by their names suddenly became busy acquainting his friends with Indiarsquos league stage performances ldquoI love cricket so much This was like cheering for your own team India we love you Irsquom so glad wersquore all hererdquo he signed offAllen and his friends will now go home with memories that will last a lifetime or memories that may yet turn even more special come November 19