Lalu Prasad wields the willow at Moin-ul-Haq stadium in Patna and (below) the Mohali stadium in Chandigarh. Pictures by The Telegraph and PTI

Patna, March 28: The man who had wowed Pakistan with his rustic charm eight years ago will be in Mohali to watch the clash of the neighbours on Wednesday.

Former chief minister Lalu Prasad, an avid cricket fan, will be among the galaxy of VIPs — Sonia Gandhi included — who will be present to witness cricket diplomacy between the two Prime Ministers, Manmohan Singh and Yousaf Raza Gilani.

Lalu Prasad’s cricketer-son Tejaswi, who is a member of the Delhi Daredevils IPL team, confirmed that his father would see the World Cup semi-final in Mohali.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Tejaswi said: “My father is going to Mohali to see the match between India and Pakistan. My father and I don’t want to miss this high-voltage match. All the big personalities will be present there, even the Pakistani Prime Minister is going to be there.”

The RJD leader was the toast of Pakistan when he had visited the country during the autumn of 2003 as part of a delegation of Indian MPs.

Pakistanis, both the common people and the elite, had taken a liking to Lalu Prasad.

He was mobbed at airports, hotels, bazaars and conference halls. The people wanted to be photographed with him, shake his hand or get his autograph.

President Pervez Musharraf had acknowledged the Lalu phenomenon when he told the Bihar leader: “You are such a hit in my country.”

Lalu Prasad is also the chairman of the Bihar Cricket Association and it was during his tenure as chief minister that Patna hosted a few international matches.

Long before Mahendra Singh Dhoni patented the helicopter shot, Lalu Prasad had used the flying machine to rescue cricket during one such game.

On February 27, 1996, rain threatened to disrupt the match between Kenya and Zimbabwe at the Moin-ul-Haq stadium in Patna. It was a rematch since the game was scheduled for the previous day but had to be abandoned because of a torrential downpour.

Lalu Prasad, then the chief minister of undivided Bihar, had hit upon an innovative idea to save the day when a sharp shower stopped the game once again. Since no other equipment was available to clear the water, he asked his pilot to fly his official helicopter above the stadium and hover above it to dry the outfield.