Bonus in the stands

That part of the afternoon was slow-paced. Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammed Sami’s long partnership was slowly taking...

That part of the afternoon was slow-paced. Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammed Sami’s long partnership was slowly taking Pakistan out of the hole, but the Kotla crowd wasn’t really enjoying it. That was when one man in the stands decided to lighten things up a bit. At the ONGC hill near the new pavilion, this man in white flannels, face painted in the tri-colour, made up for his lack of physical stature and was mimicking the stars.

He started with Shoaib Akhtar, copying his bowling action and his victory run (none of that was visible today, though, with the tourists batting) after he takes a wicket and then went on to Sachin and Irfan. The roar from the crowd was huge, more than what came at the fall of a wicket on the ground.

A poser for all

The Indian cricket board and Dilip Vengsarkar may have resolved the issue of the latter’s writing of columns, and it was said that he and Board chairman Sharad Pawar had a discussion on it on Thursday. But as one saw it, just before lunch (they presumably talked over lunch) not a word was exchanged between the two. It wasn’t surprising then, that they did not even exchange pleasantries, but then all was ok. Scratch your head for answers, there is enough time.

Smooth sailing

It was expected before the match that the Bahadhur Shah Zafar Marg and its adjacent area would turn into a mini Fort Knox with the match and International Trade Fair running simultaneously. However, barring the fact that traffic may have increased a bit, it was smooth sailing for all drivers and the public throughout the day. While traffic did not come to a halt, there was also no need for the police to use force, like they did in the Delhi-Pakistan practice match, against the crowds entering the stadium.