Hat-trick for crowd: Rajkot ruined, next stop Ahmedabad

The difference between this incident and the first two was that India were clearly on the ascendant today, coasting to an easy win with Virender Sehwag back to his irrepressible self. At 200/1, the ball was hit to the boundary. Drakes was asked by the umpire whether it had cleared; when he failed to reply, a bottle thrown from the stands hit him.

The teams agreed to walk off and both captains said that the stands must be cleared if the match was to resume. However, when it seemed further play was unlikely, Procter applied the Duckworth-Lewis formula and awarded the match to India.

Procter later said it was the third incident — the first two involved plastic objects being thrown at Pedro Collins, who was not in the playing eleven but was walking around the boundary — that forced the West Indians to leave.

‘‘It is a problem that keeps recurring, and I fully agree with their stand,’’ Procter said.

As the disgraceful scenario played out, a beleaguered BCCI chief Jagmohan Dalmiya said a plan — including the use of close-circuit cameras — was being readied for the remaining matches. ‘‘The BCCI can’t remain a silent spectator to such behaviour’’, he said.

Local officials were, however, adamant that the issue had been blown out of proportion. Police chief V V Rabari said it was beyond him why such a step was taken. ‘‘It was just a plastic bottle, which could have been thrown by a small kid playing around, and which could hardly injure anyone. The first two incidents were not even brought to our notice’’, he said.

The scene shifts on Friday to Ahmedabad, where the concerns are of an entirely different nature. Adding to those concerns is the fact that half the match will be played under floodlights; with the lights focussed on the field, security forces usually find it tough to monitor activity in the stands.

However, the Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) officials aren’t thinking of turning it into a day match. ‘‘Nothing will happen here, we have arranged for much tighter security than there was in Rajkot. There’s no question of converting it into a day match,’’ said GCA secretary Vikram Patel.

Perhaps Patel should listen to what a policeman on duty here said today: ‘‘We cleared 600 spectators from the stands, people who had bought tickets. Rajkot’s people being peace-loving, they left without a fuss. In Ahmedabad, they would have set the stadium on fire.’’