- Friday, April 18, 2025
Netherlands batter Vikramjit Singh was born in Cheema Khurd in the northern Indian state of Punjab from where his grandfather had migrated to the European nation after the anti-Sikh riot of 1984.
By: Shubham Ghosh
THE cricket World Cup 2023 has begun and among several cricketers who are taking part in the marquee event are six of Indian origin who are representing other nations. The ongoing edition of the International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup has six such cricketers who are playing for the Netherlands, New Zealand and South Africa.
Here is the list:
Vikramjit Singh (Netherlands):
Born in Cheema Khurd in India’s Punjab, the 20-year-old Vikramjit Singh has represented the Netherlands in 26 one-day internationals since 2022 in which he scored 860 runs at an average of 33.07 with the highest score of 110. He also has made four half-centuries. The southpaw is also a right-hand medium pacer and has picked seven wickets in the same format. His grandfather had migrated to the Netherlands after the anti-Sikh riots of 1984 and set up a transport business there. Singh’s family had permanently settled in the Netherlands in 2010 when Singh was seven.
Rachin Ravindra (New Zealand):
The name of Rachin Ravindra, who smashed a match-winning unbeaten hundred against England in the first match of this World Cup, signifies how much his family loves cricket. The Wellington-born was named Rachin by his cricket-loving father Ravi Krishnamurthy from Bengaluru in India after the two Indian cricket icons — Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar. The 23-year-old made his one-day international debut in India in 2021 and in 13 matches so far, he has scored 312 runs at an average of 39. The left-hand batter, who also bowls slow left-arm orthodox, has 13 wickets as well. He followed up his century with England with a half-century against the Netherlands.
Aryan Dutt (Netherlands):
Aryan Dutt is a right-arm off-break bowler whose family has roots in Hoshiarpur in India’s Punjab. His parents had moved to the Netherlands in the 1980s where Dutt was born in 2003. The cricketing journey of Dutt, who has played 26 one-day matches for the Netherlands since 2021 taking up 21 wickets, had started after he was influenced by India’s World Cup triumph in 2011. He has also received cricket training in Chandigarh and his frequent visits to his ‘second home’ has greatly helped him in honing his bowling skills.
Anil Teja Nidamanuru (Netherlands):
Anil Teja Nidamanuru, who is representing the Dutch in the current World Cup, was born in Vijayawada, located around 280 kilometres from the southern city of Hyderabad. The 29-year-old, however, made his T20 debut for Auckland in New Zealand where he was raised in 2017-18 and also made his List A debut there. He has been representing the Netherlands in international cricket since 2022 and played 21 one-day internationals so far, scoring 506 runs with two hundreds and as many fifties. He also bowls right-arm off-break.
Ish Sodhi (New Zealand):
New Zealand leg-break bowler Ish Sodhi was born in Ludhiana in India’s Punjab. He started his cricket journey in south Auckland, where his parents had migrated when he was young. It was not easy to become an accomplished spinner in New Zealand but a training stint with former New Zealand cricketers Dipak Patel and Matt Horne helped Sodhi. The 30-year-old has had a roller-coaster ride in his international career but has survived the tests to play in his maiden World Cup in his country of birth. Sodhi has taken 61 wickets in 49 one-day matches played since 2015 with the best bowling figures of 6 for 39 that he scripted against Bangladesh just before the mega tournament. He has also scored 201 one-day runs with the highest score of 35.
Keshav Maharaj (South Africa):
South African spinner Keshav Maharaj has his ancestral roots in Sultanpur in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The 33-year-old, who was born in Durban, Natal, had started as a pacer but later changed into a spinner. Having made his one-day international debut in 2017, Maharaj has played 32 matches in which he took 39 wickets with the best of 4 for 33. He is also playing in his maiden World Cup this year.
