Ashraful-watching and reconnecting on the way to Dharamsala

"I know you from somewhere."
"Of course you do."

Bangladesh cricket fans in the check-in counters and waiting areas of the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi are discovering lost connections. Families, groups of friends, fan associations… they are all waiting for their flights to Dharamsala, where Bangladesh are playing their first game of the World Cup, against Afghanistan, and filling up their time most productively.

It is a long way from home, especially for those based in the US or UK or Australia. The Delhi transit was a welcome bit of quiet, although slightly frustrating too, as some flights were delayed.

Sakib and Wali met in Delhi a couple of days ago. Sakib lives in Dhaka, Wali in Kuala Lumpur. They will watch both Bangladesh matches in Dharamsala, but it is more of a reunion for them.

Wali is presently displeased with Sakib for not letting him sleep a little more. They have a 6am flight to catch. Wali asks Sakib, not for the first time, about the match tickets. Sakib, not for the first time, shows his friend the tickets.

They chat about their college days, when they played tape-ball cricket, which was introduced to Bangladesh by Mudassar Nazar in the early 1990s. Sakib remembers playing for a club called Udity, where then young stars like Naimur Rahman and Al Sahariar were brought in. Naimur went on to lead Bangladesh in their inaugural Test in 2000, while Sahariar is regarded as a lost talent.

Talk of unfulfilled promise takes them to Mohammad Ashraful. Sakib and Wali played for clubs where Ashraful cut his teeth when he was in his early teens.

I sneak in the information that Ashraful should be around somewhere at the Delhi airport too. They don't believe me.

Ashraful is indeed a travelling expert for one of the Bangladeshi TV channels. Ashraful, a source of thrill and frustration for Bangladesh fans in his playing days, is popular as a media personality. He doesn't play much anymore, and is focussed almost entirely on his media career. We catch up with him.

Ashraful is a smiling presence as he chats with the travelling Bangladeshi reporters. He has always been friendly with the media. No surprise then that there's a good chat while waiting in a queue to buy a SIM card. He talks about how his kids miss him now as he continues to travel around playing legends tournaments and other matches.

He is excited to be going to Dharamsala, having figured out that the place is a major tourist hub. The rest of the Bangladesh fans traveling on the day of the Afghanistan match are a more serious lot. They don't talk about traveling much.

Tomorrow doesn't exist for them yet. Afghanistan have to be beaten first. They take these sort of things very seriously.