Kerala - Kochi   

Spirits flag as India loses

KOCHI: One lakh minds prayed, and rain stayed back. But at the end of the day, all those who prayed for the sun walked back home dejected.

Once the Indian batting line-up began to crumble, the mood in the stands started flagging. Occasional boundaries sent sparks of excitement. Otherwise, the crowd which filled the seats of the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium was in stupor.

Anekh and Vishnu, young fans, came in high spirits in the morning, but were a dejected lot as their favourite stars walked back to the pavilion one after another. They were restless and confused whether to continue watching the match.

“We return to the seats whenever the batsman hits four and sixes, but then a wicket falls, forcing us to leave the seats,” Anekh, a class 10 student at a city school, said.

Prajeesh kept on waving the Tricolour throughout the morning session and the excitement hit a crescendo when Sachin Tendulkar and Robin Uthappa went on the rampage in one over against speedster Bret Lee. Then, wickets started tumbling and the flag dropped to his shoulders.

He had come from Kollam to watch the match. “Seems like we have lost it,” he said, sipping coffee, even as his eyes set on the field betrayed that last glimmer of hope.

Pramod, an executive with a prominent company, was worked up about the non-operational public address system. With his cheeks painted in Tricolour, he kept watching the game ball by ball, but was confused about the progress of the match. He phoned back home every now and then to know the score from those who had the luxury of television replays and graphics.

Vignesh had come all the way from Tamil Nadu to watch his favourite team in action. As the chances of his team melted away like the ice cream in his hands, he left his seat in search of more ice creams.

Pradeep, a company executive, had to leave the stadium midway through owing to a stomach upset. “The Biryani I bought for lunch from inside the stadium seemed to have done the trick,” he said.

Among the diehard fans concerned solely about the result of the match were those purists who cherished the moments whenever the game of cricket sparkled. “My day was made when Sachin sent that ball from Bret Lee sailing into the crowd. That was vintage Sachin,” said Ravi, who had played club cricket in the past.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

HMS plea to repair roads
CIAL registers growth in international traffic
Demand for luxury bus services
Accommodation project for sailors
NETFISH to improve quality
Abdulla Haji Ahamed Sait passes away
Kochi rides high on cricket frenzy
Spirits flag as India loses
It was a smooth ride in the city
Cleanliness drives mark Gandhi Jayanti fete
‘Fish imports will not hit fish workers’
In Kochi today

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu