This is Navratri time in this part of the world and the Garba beats are rhythmic and elongated, stretching until the early hours. A steady drizzle on Monday evening failed to dampen the spirit of the locals and even at 12 midnight, Manek Chowk, a prominent city square and the street food hub in Ahmedabad, was bustling. Cricket, the first home Test of the season, is seemingly not on anyone’s mind. An India versus West Indies red-ball series, in any case, is a low-profile affair, and the interest picking up in the next couple of days appears unlikely. The first Test starts on the day of the Dussehra.
The Narendra Modi Stadium is the largest cricket arena in the world, with a capacity of 132,000. But vast swathes of empty seats are expected to greet the players. The Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) acknowledges the lukewarm response and sensibly they have decided to open only the lower tiers of the stands for the spectators. “Yes, it’s been pretty low-key so far and we have decided to open only the lower bowls for the public,” GCA secretary Anil Patel said, speaking to RevSportz. “But we will distribute around 20,000 tickets to the schools and colleges, and we will also distribute tickets to the cricket academies here. We hope that youngsters will turn up.”
Ticket prices are pretty affordable. Season tickets start from Rs 1,000. The West Indies are already depleted with two of their frontline fast bowlers, Alzarri Joseph and Shamar Joseph, ruled out owing to injuries. They have replaced them with Jediah Blades and Johann Layne respectively. Unless one is a cricket nerd, ‘Jediah and Johann who’ would be a fair question to ask.
Such is the state of affairs in Caribbean cricket that Jason Holder, the former West Indies captain and currently playing T20Is against Nepal, has declined to be part of the Test squad for the India series. This is as per a CWI release. On the face of it, Roston Chase’s team taking the Test to Day 5 would be an achievement, it feels like. Last year, New Zealand had stunned the cricket world by handing India a 3-0 home whitewash, and at the team selection press conference, chief selector Ajit Agarkar spoke about how the Indian team set-up didn’t want a repeat. The chances of the West Indies doing a New Zealand is remote, and that’s an understatement.
The Indian team will check in at Motera in the afternoon, with their practice scheduled from 1.30 pm. Will the arrival of Shubman Gill & Co woo the fans, who are still talking about Tilak Varma’s match-winning innings against Pakistan in the Asia Cup final? As things stand, it’s hoping against hope.
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