Dubai: Win or lose, we will always be there for New Zealand, say these Kiwi expats
In the stands, fans wearing the blue jerseys of the Indian team created a carnival-like atmosphere on Sunday, cheering their players on after their Kiwi wicket.
But a handful of New Zealand supporters bravely rode the waves in the sea of blues.
Craig Henderson, a UAE resident, who arrived at the stadium with fellow Kiwis, Jeremy Manning and John Larkins, said they will always be there for their team in any match.
'There are five thousand Kiwis across the UAE. The one thing we always do is believe we are the underdogs in every sport because of the size of the country, whether it's cricket, football, rugby or table tennis,' Henderson said.
'But it doesn't matter, we will always come and support the Kiwis. It doesn't matter whether they win or lose, what matters is that they will always have our support.'
Henderson, who lives in Abu Dhabi, then revealed why he considers himself lucky as a cricket fan.
'I am very lucky that I have been able to watch the Black Caps play in the UAE at least 20 times,' he said before speaking on his greatest moment as a New Zealand supporter in the UAE.
'I spent some time with Kane Williamson (New Zealand batting superstar) last night (Saturday night) and he still believes that New Zealand's greatest Test victory was against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi (in 2018) when we won the match by four runs,' he said.
'At one stage, Pakistan needed 46 runs with six wickets in hand but our team fought back. That was an incredible Test match!'
Perhaps, one of the most incredible memories for every fan was New Zealand's stirring run to the 1992 World Cup semifinals when they captivated the cricket world with their brand of attacking cricket.
'I am very lucky to have experienced those beautiful moments in that World Cup. You know when you are a smaller country with a very small population, you have to do things that are outside of the normal sphere,' he said.
Henderson, who fell in love with cricket when he started watching Richard Hadlee, Ian Smith and Martin Crowe as a child, also said why it's wrong to call New Zealand a rugby country.
'If you look at New Zealand in different sports, we are not just a rugby country, we also won the last three editions of the America's Cup (legendary sailing event),' he said.
'We are good in so many different sports. So when they tell you that New Zealand is only a rugby country, it's wrong. It's what the media wants you to believe.'
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