As city hosts its first Test ever, the excitement is palpable with more than 2,000 people turning out to watch Indians practise
While the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the Lodha Committee are battling it out in the Supreme Court, on the ground, the goes on as usual.
Both the teams, India and New Zealand, are here for the third Test to be played at the Holkar Stadium. And all the talk of the match being cancelled have gone up in smoke.
Like the previous two venues that hosted back to back historical Tests – 500th (in Kanpur) and 250th Test (in Kolkata), the third Test will hold a lot of significance for Madhya Pradesh's cricket capital.
The stadium, which has hosted quite a few one ay internationals including the one where Virender Sehwag scored a double hundred against West Indies in 2011, will be hosting its first-ever Test.
The Test promises to pull the crowd. More than 2,000 people had gathered to witness the practice session of the Indian team.
India batting coach Sanjay Bangar said, "I've been coming here for years — the outfield and wickets are excellent. The local organisers have great motivation. Even for the practice, there are 2,000-4,000 people. There is excitement wherever we go.
"We talk about Test cricket dying, but looking at the response the Indian team is getting, I don't think there is any dearth in cricket's popularity."
Bangar said to popularise the game, the matches have to be taken to Tier II venues.
"It's definitely one of the ways you can make sure the game is popularised and taken to the small centres where there is great interest among spectators.
"But to continue to attract crowds, we have to ensure that on the ground, we need to provide people the best facilities — be in drinking water or clean toilers or easy entry and exit points — we see that people love to watch cricket, it happens in the IPL, the stadium is always full. Those are steps that should be taken to ensure a lot of people watch Test cricket," he said.
Ubad khabad wicket
The wicket has been covered due to the unpredictable weather. So the experts have not been able to gauge how the wicket is going to behave. However, going by the local newspaper that managed to grab the picture of the wicket — it shows a lot of cracks.
The caption calls it 'ubad khabad (uneven)' and the headline says: "Arre…yeh wicket toh chaar din ka bhi nahi (This wicket will not even last for four days)," said the headline.
'Virat making crucial contributions'
India captain Virat Kohli has not been in form. After his double ton against West Indies, he hasn't done any thing worth notable, but Bagar has full faith in him.
"He had a tremendous tour of West Indies — he got a double hundred there. He was batting well in Jamaica too. Here, if you analyse the innings in Kolkata, it was a match-winning performance.
"India were tottering at 45 for 4 and from there, he and Rohit (Sharma) had a rear guard partnership. Obviously, sometimes, the volume of runs don't come but even small contributions can help the team win.
"I'm pretty sure he will be itching to convert the starts to bigger ones, but he has been making some crucial contributions," said Bangar.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=spacer}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Indian players")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}