Bangladeshi students in Pune gear up to cheer for their team

While online tickets for this event were fully booked last month, a fortunate few secured their spots through BookMyShow to witness it in person, while others have organized to watch the match at Pune University’s premises.

The Bangladesh Students Council, a student body in Pune, has organized a live broadcast of the match for individuals who were unable to secure tickets for various reasons.

With the eight-foot wide banner showing “Bangladeshi students in Pune ” and Bangladesh flags, enthusiasts will head to Gahunje Stadium in their two-wheeler vehicles.

“Since this would be my first experience watching my team live in Pune, I am thrilled to show my support for my team. This match holds significant importance as both teams are highly skilled, and the underlying rivalry is sure to make our day quite intriguing,” said Alif Mahmud Dipto, a second-year BA student at Fergusson College.

Dipto said that, while they were struggling to get tickets, their Bangladeshi seniors and alumni in Pune managed to procure tickets and generously presented them.

Tasniya Tabassum, a second-year student of MA English, expressed her deep love for cricket, mentioning that she has been a cricket enthusiast since childhood. She considers the opportunity to watch tomorrow’s match a one-in-a-million chance.

“In previous matches, Bangladesh was playing well but not all of them were consecutive performers. We want to see them work together as a team to achieve better results,” said Tasniya from Pune University.

“I consider myself very fortunate to be part of this match, and I excitedly told to my parents that there’s a chance I might appear on TV. Although our winning rate is just 11 per cent, I have a strong belief that we’ll put on a great performance. My best wishes go out to Sakib Al-Hassan!” said Sadia Afrin Moumi who is pursuing her BA in International Business from Pune University.

Sadia, while reflecting on her past experience of celebrating Bangladesh’s victory over India in the Asia Cup this year, said, “While we were celebrating our team’s win in our apartment, our neighbours approached, wondering why we were celebrating Bangladesh’s win and that too in India. It’s clear that not everyone is open to such celebrations.”

Tasniya and Afrin proudly displayed the Bangladesh jerseys they were wearing and highlighted that those jerseys had been specially ordered from Bangladesh.

They said that due to their resemblance to Indians, people were quite curious when they stepped out wearing Bangladeshi jerseys.

Shreshta Bhowmik is a first-year BA student at Pune University, and despite being relatively new to Pune, he’s filled with excitement about the upcoming match. He mentioned that even though Bangladesh lost two consecutive matches, he anticipates a closely contested, neck-to-neck game.

“This marks Bangladesh’s fourth match, having faced two consecutive losses while India secured three consecutive wins. It’s expected to be a challenging match for both teams,” he said.

Recalling the previous India-Pakistan match where spectators from Ahmedabad mocked a Pakistani player with religious chants, students expressed their hope for a respectful atmosphere in the upcoming game.

They said that while they do not expect any unpleasant incidents, they certainly do not wish for them to happen.

“We are extremely enthusiastic and are anticipating a mini-victory parade after the win,” said Sugupta Chakma who comes from hilly regions of Bangladesh.