On October 6 World Cup opening match between Netherlands and Pakistan in Hyderabad will not be a neutral affair for a portion of the audience. Twenty to thirty members of Teja Nidamanuru’s family, including his mother and grandmother, who have never witnessed a live match from the stadium, are anticipated to attend the game.
Teja, who was born in India and reared in New Zealand, will don the orange uniform less than 270 kilometers from Vijayawada, where he spent his first six years of childhood before leaving India. He hopes that his 13-year-old sister, who presently attends school in Vijayawada, will be permitted to accompany him as a mascot when the national anthem is performed on the field.
“Even though he has played state cricket in New Zealand, we never thought he would play at a World Cup, that too for the Netherlands,” Teja’s mother admits. “It will be an amazing feeling to see him play. His journey has been hard and different to most international cricketers.”
Teja insists that his memory of his early infancy in Vijayawada, where he grew up with his grandparents, is still vivid despite his lack of language. “I have many recollections of going around with companions and playing wherever there was space. I have a photographic memory and remember a great deal.”
Two and a half years have passed since he last saw his family, and this reunion promises to be of the grandest variety.
“Being able to play in India and in front of the family… My grandmother and mother haven’t been to a live game before. To have them in the stadium and to be a part of that, I don’t know if I can describe the whole thing…” Teja says, struggling to explain his excitement. “There have been plenty of World Cups. But a World Cup in India is genuinely special.”
“I was initially only supposed to go there for six months. I got a contract and finished second with that club – had a decent year. My cricketing journey with New Zealand was taking a different route. But I had to make a decision – because there are other things in life as well that I value and want to progress in. I knew if I go back to New Zealand, it would be different. I got a work permit from my company; it was for four years. Initially, it was for work that I decided to move over there. I knew at the back of my mind that there could be some cricketing opportunities but that wasn’t the main reason at that time.
“But for how long can a corporate company give you a leeway? I have been away for several months this year because of the qualifiers and the World Cup. So, a couple of months back, I decided to join the Netherlands cricket board. It gave me an opportunity to play as well as work in my free time. So, I get the best of both worlds.”
Teja’s international ambitions took some time to come to fruition but it ultimately did in his late 20s. In just over a year and 20 ODIs, he is already the second-highest century-maker for the Netherlands in the format, behind only the legendary Ryan ten Doeschate. Both of his centuries have been scored in Harare and in winning causes, with one coming against West Indies in this year’s World Cup Qualifiers high-scoring thriller.
During the World Cup, he may be searching for his Harare in India, but he is more likely to feel at home in Hyderabad. Not only will he reunite with his family, but he will also reunite with other individuals. Three days after his match against Pakistan, he may confront his Auckland compatriots Glenn Phillips and Mark Chapman when the Netherlands play New Zealand at the same venue.
He laments his grandfather, who passed away five years ago, despite all the people he is about to meet. “I grew up in Vijayawada with my grandparents. My mother was quite young, and my father worked for the government and was frequently transferred.
“My grandfather started my cricketing journey when I was very young. He was the one who bought me my first cricket gear, my first pair of gloves. I was the first grandchild of the family, and maybe there was more love and affection and getting away. I never sat still. He always rolled the ball to me and said ‘go and play’. Unfortunately, he passed away five years ago. But it would’ve been pretty special to have him see me, but his wishes are with me.”
