Touted as one of the brightest cricketing talents in Netherlands, Vikramjit Singh, will take guard against India when both the nations face off against each another in the Super 12 encounter of the T20 World Cup on Thursday, 27 October.
As his name suggests, 19-year-old Vikramjit has his roots in India, the land of his forefathers, with which he still maintains a deep connection. In fact, the bond runs so strong that Vikramjit’s family has never been able to cut it off.
Born to Harpreet Singh, who runs a transportation company in Amstelveen, Vikramjit’s family moved to Netherlands when his grandfather, Khushi Cheema, decided to ensure the safety of his family following the rise of insurgency in Punjab during the mid 1980s.
Khushi Cheema, who hailed from Cheema Khurd near Jalandhar, settled in the new country by driving a taxi, which later flourished into a company of his own.
However, it was not a smooth sailing for Khushi and his family in their initial days in a new country as recalled by his son and Vikramjit’s father, Harpreet.
“I was five when I came to the Netherlands. It was very hard; you didn’t know the language, it was a completely different culture. It took me a few years to settle down,” said Harpreet in a telephonic conversation from Amstelveen with the Indian Express.
“Back then, there was racism. I faced a lot because of my skin colour, turban and beard,” Harpreet recalled.
Meanwhile, Khushi who realised that his duty as a father had ended decided to return to his country of birth and handed over the company to his son, Harpreet, before returning to India in 2000.
Though settled in the Netherlands, Harpreet’s son, Vikramjeet was born in Cheema Khurd like his father. He didn’t move abroad until he turned seven years of age.
Vikramjit’s cricketing journey started when he was first spotted by then Dutch skipper Peter Borren in an under-12 tournament. At 15, Vikramjit was part of the Dutch ‘A’ side and in two year's time made his senior team debut as well.
In order to horne his skills better and excel as a player for a country where football has more precedence over cricket, Vikramjit shifted his base to Jalandhar in 2021.
The young cricketer started his training under Taruwar Kohli, a former under-19 cricketer who has played club cricket in Amsterdam. Moving to Taruwar’s academy also helped him spend time with his grandfather who resided closeby in their village of Khurd Cheema.
On Thursday, Vikramjit is hopeful that his grandfather, an Indian fan, will support his Dutch side rather than his country of birth when both the sides lock horns at the SCG.
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