Sat Sri Akal,bhangra pauna hai (do the bhangra), the sparse crowd at the Mohali cricket stadium shouts heartily as Dennis van Erp and his friends,Gabriela and Martin,walk into Block No 5 at 10 a.m. Dennis,dressed in an orange turban and matching tee-shirt,obliges with a bhangra jig before taking his seat. Its a carefully chosen look and Dennis is glad the crowd noticed. Dennis,23,is a Dutch national who has been in Chandigarh for the last three months,teaching kindergarten children at two schools in the city. A student of Fine Arts in Netherlands,Denniss teaching assignment is part of his internship and he plans to go back to Netherlands in another two months. He doesnt get to wear his nationality on his sleeve too often but on Thursday,as giants South Africa played Netherlands in a Group B match in Chandigarh,Dennis decided his team needed some cheering. A Punjabi pagdi,he decided,would add that Indian touch too. So a day before the match,Dennis went to the crowded Rehri market in Chandigarhs Sector 22,looking for orange turbans for himself and his two friends. As he made his way through the narrow bylanes of the market,he stopped briefly to ask people where he could find basanti (orange) turbans. The day of the match begins early for the Dutchman at his Sector 48 home. Two of his Indian friends manage to convince a Sikh neighbour to come over and help Dennis tie his turban. Dennis sits on a chair and with every tight knot of the turban,winces. We had planned this months ago. I wanted to go about it in a traditional Indian way. Somebody told me that I must sport a beard to complete the look so I did not shave for three days, he says,running his hands over his fresh stubble. I am going to watch the match with my friends Martin and Gabriela. Martin is from Slovakia and he does not know anything about cricket,but he is coming along, says Dennis. Soon,Martin and Gabriela join him at home. Martin looks exactly like Dennis,complete with the orange turban and two tiny Netherlands flag painted on each cheek. Gabriela is wearing an orange headband and has HOLLAND scrawled across her face. The three friends head downstairs to look for an auto rickshaw. Dennis says his three-month stay in India has prepared him not to take anything for grantednot even an auto ride. So he plans his trips in advance,with half an hour reserved for finding autorickshaws. At the end of a 16-hour ride,the autorickshaw driver says they will have walk down the remaining three kilometres as part of the security arrangements for the match. In the Netherlands,we have public transport that supplements the traffic and security arrangements. Matches are meant to be enjoyed and I think this walk will surely put us off. But we have to support Netherlands. They need it against a team like SA, says Dennis. The three friends make it past the electronic ticket gates at the stadium and soon enter their block. The next half hour is spent getting photographs clicked with cricket fans,who are amused at the look that Dennis and his friends are sporting. The 16th over of the match gives Dennis and his friends the opportunity they are waiting for. South African captain Graeme Smith departs,clean bowled by B Loots,and Dennis chants Hup Holland Hup. Its Dutch for Go Holland,Go, Dennis shouts,straining to make himself heard as the crowd,till then unsure about who to support,picks up his chant. The same over,big-hitter Jacques Kallis is back in the pavilion and Dennis goes hoarse shouting Hup Holland Hup. I was also told to chant Sachin,Sachin in a particular way. He is the Taeke Taekema (Dutch hockey star) of Indian cricket. Its amazing that people chant his name in the stadium even when he is not playing, says Dennis. As Amla and De Villiers start making mockery of the Dutch attack,faces drop and Dennis climbs to the top row and starts waving the orange flag with a handful of Indian fans. After that,there isnt much to cheer about as the South Africans pile up 351 runs. Mid-innings break is spent eating biryani and posing for photographs with fellow fans. For someone who comes from a country where football and field hockey are considered the real sport,Dennis seems to know his cricket well. He was one of the few boys in school who played the game. I love conversations about cricket. Though I do not know much about Indian cricketers,I like the fact that people here are so passionate about the game. I told them about our cricketers. They were surprised to know that one of our players,Adeel Raja,is a tobacconist back home, says Dennis. The Dutch innings begins and Dennis roars the Punjabi war cry,Chak de Phatte. The crowd reciprocates by chanting Hup Holland,Hup. Wickets keep tumbling after the early flourish by Dutch batsman Wesley Barresi. At the end of the match,as Netherlands are bundled out for 120,Dennis prepares to walk up to the pavilion to get autographs of his favourite players. He walks past five gates to reach the pavilion and passes his autograph book to a police constable who is on the pavilion steps. The Dutch manager,Ed van Nierop,pleased to see his countryman,hands Dennis a World Cup cap signed by Dutch cricketers. Dennis walks back to show his friends his prized possession. This is what I like about sport. It binds people and makes people proud of their country, says Dennis as waves his new-found friends at the stadium goodbye.
