Shortly after lunch was called, On Day 1 of the second Test between India and New Zealand at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, a significant number of fans lined up opposite the media box. They were protesting the lack of free drinking water at the venue as temperatures soared above 31 degrees Celsius on Thursday. Fans reported that the water containers were empty within the first hour of the match. It’s worth noting that ever since the 2023 ODI World Cup, the BCCI mandated all state associations to provide free drinking water during international matches.
As fans queued up for water, volunteers scrambled to manage the situation but initially they struggled as the chaos escalated. Chants of “MCA haay, haay” and “MCA hume paani do” (MCA give us water) echoed from the crowd.
The situation persisted for most of the 40-minute lunch break. It was only towards the end of the break that volunteers managed to source some drinking water from their storage and a bit from the media box. Fans also complained about dirty washrooms and a general lack of facilities.
Rohan Deshpande, a fan from Nashik, expressed his frustration, “The facilities here are terrible. We’ve come from far away, they don’t allow umbrellas inside, there are no shades for fans, and now there’s no drinking water. Is this how you promote Test cricket?” Another local fan, Prithvi Naik, added, “I challenge the authorities to sit in the stands for just five overs. When they feel thirsty, they’ll find no water. It’s torture.”
“Considering the scorching heat, we had decided to provide cold water. In our previous experience, fans had complained about us providing warm water or boiling water. We, as management, thought we would provide them with cold water so we had kept cool cages. Once the water in cool cages finished, we tried to refill it with the same cold water, and in that process it got delayed,” Kamlesh Pisal, MCA Secretary, told reporters. “As Lunch was taken, more fans rushed to the water stand and that created chaos. We have taken ample precautions that we will be resolving it and not just provide cold water but also normal water. It happened in only two three stands where the stands were connected. We have done a recce of the entire water stands and will make sure everything is refilled properly tonight to avoid such situations. We will keep sufficient water backup for tomorrow. We are doubling it. We will ensure there is no logistical issue in refilling the water. The issue was solved in 15-20 minutes,” he claimed.
“We can only apologise to the fans for inconvenience caused. But we want to assure them, through MCA, that this won’t be repeated and everything will be taken care of,” Pisal added.
Many fans had to buy water during the chaos despite free water promised by the authorities. On the issue, Pisal said: “That is unfortunate because we never asked anyone to sell water because we have promised free water.”
Despite the weekday, around 10,000 fans attended, facing additional challenges like the stadium’s remote location in Gahunje, 30 kilometers from Pune’s city center, requiring a long walk due to restrictions on public transport near the venue on matchdays.
The stadium, which hosted its first international game in 2012, has only five out of its 36,000 seats under shade. With umbrellas not being permitted, fans brought large pieces of cloth to cover, and many used wet handkerchiefs to cope with the heat.
Nevertheless, the spirit of the Pune crowd remained undeterred. As play resumed post-lunch, fans quickly returned to their seats. With the BCCI’s directive to provide free drinking water to fans, the responsibility now falls on state associations to ensure adequate arrangements in order to prevent such issues in the future.