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Chepauk stirs to life as the Indian team comes calling
The ICC World Cup in India has begun largely in front of empty stands; all that will change when the hosts begin their campaign versus Australia on Sunday.
It’s 10:30am on a blazing Saturday and there’s a dash of activity outside the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Unlike the subdued surroundings on Thursday and Friday, there’s finally a sense that an important game is around the corner. It's the dawn of India’s World Cup campaign and they are up against five-time champions Australia.
There's a middle-aged man who has travelled from Kolhapur, Maharashtra. There's a man in his 20s from Vellore, about three hours drive away. Two others from small towns in Tamil Nadu join the conversation. All have one request -- ticket for Sunday's game. Telling them that the tickets are sold out online is met with gloom. “We are ready to buy tickets in black. Please help," one of them pleads. "I tried to book online, but wasn't able to. I thought I will make the journey here to see whether there is a possibility for tickets,” another chimes in.
On the first three days of the ODI World Cup, largely vacant seats, stadiums devoid of people and passion, have been beamed to television audiences around the world. It's no revelation that matches not involving India will only attract sparse crowds, but perhaps India's commendable performance at the Asian Games has also played a part in sports fans not entirely turning their attention to the 50-over spectacle yet.
So, will Sunday change things? Will the World Cup come alive at last? If a clash between India and Australia -- two prime favourites to go all the way -- doesn't arouse interest, it’s unlikely much else will.
The tickets for the game at Chepauk, which can hold 38,000 spectators, have been sold out. Australia captain Pat Cummins is certainly expecting the stadium to be reverberating with boisterous Indian fans. “The home crowd’s going to be noisy and very one-sided, which is nothing new, and it's great. There’s a billion fans that are going to be watching closely, cheering them on,” he said.
A Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) official said the buzz this time is not the same as it was at the 2011 World Cup in the subcontinent. “Back then, there would be people queuing up outside the stadium for a week leading up to the game. But most of the tickets were sold at the counters. This time, it is all online. That is perhaps also why we can't feel the buzz. The TNCA is not in charge of tickets. So, we have not had requests because most people seem to know that we don't have tickets to give away. That is perhaps why there haven’t been many people assembling outside the stadium,” the official said.
There hasn’t been a mad rush to catch a glimpse of the Indian players at training either. “People have not come because they are not allowed. It's different when CSK train before IPL. Three stands are filled, but they are provided water bottles and allowed to watch,” the official added.
Chennai's craze for cricket though is well-documented. Its people have made a man from Ranchi one of their own, given standing ovations to opposition teams and usually appreciated the nuances of the game.
On Sunday, all of this will be put to test, and may have a big say on how this World Cup is received.
