London underground: From Taipei, with love for India

The organisers hire entertainers on match days to keep spectators happy. On Thursday, when there was no play for long hours, they were in demand.

Among the mass of blue at Trent Bridge, there were two unfamiliar faces with the Tri-colour painted on the face.

 Selfie with MSK

Of the countless Indian faces at Trent Bridge, there were a few familiar ones. Not commentators like Sunil Gavaskar or Sanjay Manjrekar, who invariably draw attention and cause a clamour for selfies. Chief selector MSK Prasad was also requested to pose for photos when he stepped out of his enclosure. His colleagues Devang Gandhi and Sarandeep Singh were less in demand as they made their way through the crowd without being recognised by many. The BCCI’s acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary and CEO Rahul Johri were also among the crowd on Thursday.

READ| Harold Larwood: No longer the tragic tale of a forgotten English hero

From Taipei, for India

Among the mass of blue at Trent Bridge, there were two unfamiliar faces with the Tri-colour painted on the face. Leon Yu and Arnold Su are from Chinese Taipei, who have been based in Mumbai for the last eight years. They work for a company which has organised this trip for its employees to watch India’s matches against New Zealand and Pakistan. “I don’t follow cricket, but I support India,” said Arnold. Surrounded by their Indian colleagues, Leon and Arnold joined the chorus when the crowd started chanting ‘India, India’.

All-woman drum team

The organisers hire entertainers on match days to keep spectators happy. On Thursday, when there was no play for long hours, they were in demand. A big hit was a four-member team of drummers. All of them were women of Indian origin. They belted out the traditional Punjabi beat with hundreds shaking a leg and more around them. Quietly watching from a corner was India selector Sarandeep, who being a Sardar must have enjoyed the beats.

READ| A bat room at Trent Bridge

Bhajji can’t leave

It was about an hour after the match had been called off. Harbhajan Singh, who is here as TV commentator, was trying to leave the stadium when a crowd of around 50 gathered near the gate and started shouting his name, taking out mobile phones to click pictures. The security guards formed a cordon around him so that he didn’t get mobbed. But, because the crowd didn’t disperse, he couldn’t leave. Finally, Harbhajan had to retreat and get back inside the building.