Pollution causes haze over India-Bangladesh Twenty20
opening T20 match on their India tour, scheduled for November 3 at Delhi’s Ferozeshah Kotla, is likely to go ahead despite the city’s air quality plummeting to the “severe” category on Wednesday.
Organisers of the match at the Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA) said the sale of tickets was on even as some former cricketers expressed concern at the possible playing conditions.
“In present state of ‘hazardous air quality’ n Delhi Let’s spare a thought fr Ind/B’Desh teams having to play T-20 on 3rd Nov at Kotla..” tweeted former India captain Bishan Singh Bedi.
Gautam Gambhir, a former India and Delhi player and now a Member of Parliament from East Delhi, who has been vocal about pollution, told ANI, “I am not really bothered whether the match will happen or not. I hope it happens and it should happen, but again it’s the thing (pollution) which is throughout the year that Delhi people face. It’s a far more serious issue than having a game of cricket.”
Pollution levels are expected
› In present state of ‘hazardous air quality’ n (sic) Delhi Let’s spare a thought fr Ind/B’Desh teams having to play T20. BISHAN BEDI, former India captain
to remain hazardous over the next few days, with officials at the Indian Meteorological Department saying they do not expect a significant change in wind speeds.
The top Board office-bearers who were in Bengaluru discussing National Cricket Academy matter, said they’ll be looking into it.
“The issue has been flagged and we will be discussing it,” said an office-bearer.
At the Arun Jaitley Stadium, preparations for the match went ahead as scheduled on Wednesday.
The way leading up to the stadium was decked with drapes, and chairs were being laid out at the Old Club House stand.
“As you can see the preparations are in full swing for the match. We are ready to host the match. Rest is upon higher authorities,” a DDCA official said.
The match is scheduled to start at 7pm, and evenings generally see a deepening of pollutants in the air.
In 2017, there was widespread criticism after a Test match between India and Sri Lanka, held in November at the Ferozeshah Kotla, saw the unprecedented sight of cricketers taking the field wearing anti-pollution masks.
The Test was disrupted several times on Day 2 as Sri Lankan players left the field complaining of health issues ranging from difficulty breathing, to nausea.
Things got so bad that the team ran out of players to replace on the field, and Sri Lanka’s trainer and their fielding coach began to change into cricket whites in case they needed to fill in.
At one point after lunch on that day, play had to be halted for around twenty minutes because of poor visibility caused by the toxic haze.
The BCCI had announced after the match that they would keep matches away from Delhi during the period when pollution is at its worst in the city.
However, thanks to rotation policy and a shortage of venues due to weather, cricket returns to Delhi in the haze.