Ball of a time for Vizagites
Visakhapatnam, Oct. 20: The picturesque ACA-VDCA Stadium which witnessed fireworks from Mahendra Singh Dhoni in 2005 and later from Yuvraj Singh in 2007, came to life after a long gap of three years. The crowds thronged the Stadium, some with tickets and others without. Cricket ruled the roost on Wednesday.
The packed stands backed the Men in Blue to the hilt and cheered them on. Initially it looked as if the bowlers would not disappoint. Ashish Nehra was the pick of the bowlers sending the Aussie opening pair back to the pavilion. However, with Cameroon White and Michael Clarke changing the tempo, the crowds were stunned into silence. They appeared as pulverised by the attack as the Indian bowlers did.
With the Indians coming to bat, Shikar Dhawan was given a warm welcome. However, he disappointed by getting out in the very next over. Later it was Murali Vijay who followed suit. But the crowds placed their faith in Virat Kohli and Yuvraj who resurrected the Indian innings. Every shot was appreciated and crowds cheered the batsmen, especially Yuvraj.
Some youngsters even tried to hoodwink the security men by trying to slip through the gates. A group of 40 teenagers made an audacious attempt to scale the fence and enter the Stadium. But they were all rounded
up by the policemen and sent packing.
Amidst all the action there were a couple of close shaves on and off the ground. An elderly man watching the match from the Sir Vizzy stand was lucky to get away with a mild bruise when a massive hit by Cameroon White grazed his cheek. Umpire Billy Bowden looked petrified when a ferocious strike by Michael Clarke missed him by a few inches. Bowden’s reflexes came in handy for him.
All through the first innings the crowd in the lower stands braved the heat and humidity. Hotel stalls made the most of the large crowd, who were more than willing to feast on the snacks.
Kids had a field day too with many bunking school to watch the nation’s favourite sport.
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