As Virat Kohli received a guard of honour in his 100th Test match at the IS Bindra PCA International Stadium, Chandigarh, 39-year-old hearing-impaired fan Simranjeet Singh waved from above the pavillion. Simranjeet, whose name was etched on Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore jersey in 2020, had come to watch his star player becoming the 12th Indian cricketer to play 100 Test matches.
“I have been a Virat Kohli fan since long and when Virat sir honoured my work as a Covid-19 hero by putting my name on his jersey in 2020, it motivated not just me but all specially-abled fans in India and the world. Even though I could not watch the opening day of the Test match and the moment Virat sir was given a special cap by Indian coach Rahul Dravid at the stadium, I followed the action on my phone and read about his emotional views on the feat. It’s a matter of pride for Virat sir and all his fans. It feels special to witness the historic moments here at the stadium,” shared Singh while speaking with The Indian Express through his friend Rakesh Kumar acting as an interpreter.
Simranjeet, who works as a senior assistant in the Punjab home guard department, was born with hearing impairment and had shifted to Chandigarh from his native village Khizrabad in Mohali. Singh also played in cricket tournaments for specially-abled at the national level. The Chandigarh resident collected over would Rs 98,000 during the Covid-19 first wave in India as funds. His name was chosen by Royal Challengers Bangalore as part of the Covid-19 heroes initiative. In a Zoom call which Simranjeet was part of, Kohli said, “We have seen people, who fought off the pandemic and worked selflessly to go out help people. I feel proud to wear the jersey of Simranjeet and it’s our way to pay respect to these amazing people, Kohli had said during the Zoom call.
Singh remembers the conversation and was also helped by his son in raising money. “My motivation has been my wife, who works in GMCH Hospital and would go to the hospital every single day during the first Covid-19 wave. When we started the fundraising drive, we wanted to help the hearing impaired people, who struggled with getting food in those tough times. My son was the first one to contribute as he gave me Rs 500 from his pocket money.”
Though Kohli missed scoring a hundred in the first innings of India, Simranjeet will be at the stadium on Sunday with his wife and son to cheer for the Indian team. With India scoring a mammoth total of 574 for 8 and Sri Lanka scoring 108 for 4 at the end of the day’s play, Singh is hopeful of seeing Kohli bat once more in the match.
“When I conversed with Virat sir, he had told me that he will meet me when the situation improves. With the Indian team in a bio-bubble here in Mohali, I could not meet him. He waved to the crowds and that felt like he is talking to us and we are having a conversation. It was like him using a sign language for each fan of his and I hope to meet him one day,” said Simranjeet.
Meanwhile, fans were overjoyed watching Ravindra Jadeja playing a knock of 175 runs on the second day of the match. The terrace block was almost packed.
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