Born in Rotherham, brought up in Bury, this is why I support India over England

In April 1990 the Tory bruiser of the time, Norman Tebbit, came up with what he called “the cricket test”.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Tebbit asked a rather menacing rhetorical question: “A large proportion of Britain’s Asian population fail to pass the cricket test.

Which side do they cheer for?” In an era in which the politics of identity are again a force, it feels like a progressive counter to point out that, in the England v India series now under way, I’m supporting India.

That is in part about the memory of great players past. Three months after Tebbit defined his infamous test, England beat India at Lord’s by 247 runs in a game that is remembered for Graham Gooch’s 333 in the first innings but in which the most enchanting innings was a sparking 121 in 111 balls by India’s captain Mohammad Azharuddin.

The Indian captain followed Dilip Vengsarkar and Gundappa Viswanath as Indian batsmen I had rooted for, not to mention the charismatic all-rounder Kapil Dev and Bishan Bedi, the left-arm spinner who is the most beautiful bowler I have seen, to this day. It was also about Farokh Engineer, the Parsi wicket keeper at Lancashire and Karsan Ghavri, supreme professional at Ramsbottom in the Lancashire League.

Of all the sports to turn into a test of identity, cricket already seemed like the last. I remember being at Lord’s in the summer of 2011 when I was hoping Sachin Tendulkar, on his last appearance in England, might score the 100th international century of his career. He didn’t; he was out for 34 but we were treated instead to an unbeaten 103 by Rahul Dravid which was graceful and formidable at the same time.

I was there with my two boys who were supporting their mother’s country, from which their grandparents emigrated in 1963, and were sitting in an unsegregated terrace in their India kits. Hundreds, probably thousands, of English children of Indian heritage were supporting the country of their parents and grandparents.

It occurred to me then that this was evidence of a country that was quite comfortable with its multiculturalism. When Tendulkar came out to bat, the whole ground rose to grant him the ovation that is due to great talent. Over the years the allegiance of my children has gradually infected my own. I am Shubman Gill not Ben Stokes.

Rishi Sunak was often photographed wearing an England shirt and professing his support. To be fair to him, he could hardly have done anything else. You can’t realistically expect the Prime Minister to declare openly that he is supporting the opposition.

But in my household we always hoped and suspected that, as the son of East African-born Hindus from a Punjabi family, he secretly supported India. Maybe when he turned up at the Indian Premier League final recently he was preparing himself for the revelation he has wanted India to win all along. Maybe Sunak genuinely does support England and if he does, good for him. He was born in Southampton and went to Winchester. They are his team, too.

If I advocated supporting Manchester United over Manchester City I would, quite rightly, be castigated. The heritage hatreds of football allow no generosity or neutrality.

It’s not like that in cricket. There is a somewhat posed rivalry between Yorkshire and Lancashire but, as someone born in Rotherham who grew up in Bury, I find myself on both sides of that one, too. In the closest county cricket comes to a contest that forces a choice, I support both sides.

In that spirit, I hope India win every game but if England were to win 5-0 instead, well, I shan’t be too upset.

I have, after all, supported them most of my life. This week I will side with my children and that is fine. It’s not a test.

Photograph by Ben Hoskins/Getty Images for Surrey CCC