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Homeboy and the familiar faces

This English team is loaded with Asian spice, which is sure to offer a delicious treat

CAPTAIN & COLT Rahul Dravid and Sreesanth (left) who is likely to make his home debut PHOTO: AFP

The heat could be horrible and there could be many fidgety moments but the fans in the galleries and chairs will have a lot to cheer when the Indians play the English in the TVS Cup cricket series one-dayer at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium this Thursday.

Home debut

Apart from Sreesanth's much-awaited home debut in the India colours - he will also be the first from his State to play at home - we will get to watch a refreshingly different England team this time.

A team that could look very familiar to us since it has a very significant Asian presence these days. And which offers fresh hope for all those who think it's tough to get into the Indian team.

Vikram Solanki, who led England in a recent warm-up game, was born in Udaipur and spent his first eight years in Rajasthan. Owais Shah, who flew down to Hyderabad two years ago for some batting lessons from former Indian captain Mohammed Azharuddin, and seam bowler Kabir Ali, a part-time model, were both born in Pakistan. Sajid Mohammed also has his roots in that country.

International flavour

In fact, England has a huge international flavour these days. We all know that Kevin Pietersen - the star of England's Ashes triumph and the man with the weirdest hairdo in cricket last year, hails from South Africa. But there's another `South African' in the team. Wicketkeeper Matt Prior hails from Johannesburg.

And Geriant Jones, the team's main gloveman, was born to Welsh parents in Papua New Guinea and learned his cricket in Australia before moving to England.

With such an interesting bunch, the two giant electronic screens, which will make their Kochi debut this week, will be closely watched.

Cricket is all about entertainment these days - we got another strong reminder when the Bollywood star Jackie Shroff and cricketer L. Balaji did the honours at the ODI ticket sales inauguration the other day.

There will be many eyes watching the organisers' show too.

With a new team in place in the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the Kerala Cricket Association is aware that it will come under close scrutiny this time, despite its impressive record as a host in the last four Kochi ODIs.

"We want the players and spectators to have a pleasant time and we're taking a lot of care, even in the little things," said the KCA President S. K. Nair.

Apart from the security nets, which will virtually cover all the stands, plans are also on to provide water in the galleries, which can hold nearly 45,000 fans. Public amenities will be given top priority.

"We want the fans to watch the match comfortably, we don't mind even selling fewer tickets for that," said Mr. Nair.

So, get set, happy watching... and start the Mexican wave.

STAN RAYAN

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