India against Pakistan, in the final of the inaugural Twenty20 World
Cup. No, we're not talking Johannesburg 2007, but Bangalore 2012. This
time, it was the inaugural T20 World Cup for the Blind, which India took
by 29 runs.
The 12-day tournament, comprising nine teams, signed-off with much
fanfare. There was India's national broadcaster, Doordarshan, on hand to
telecast the match. There were cheerleaders and the customary T20 bugle
call being blasted over the PA. There were radio jockeys with
boundary-side updates, and there were local actors to add a dash of
glamour and get the crowd going. And, most vitally, there was a crowd to get going. A crowd that numbered around 4000.
"I don't think I'll ever experience anything like this in my life
again," South Africa's visually-impaired cricket team captain, Desigan
Pillay, said, as the spectators launched into a chant. His team-mate,
Hendrik Christiaan, backed him up: "Back home, your wife thinks you're
great. And, probably, your mum. But to see so many people here, creating
such an atmosphere, it's very encouraging."
Batting first on a Central College ground with a patchy outfield, India
got to 258 for 8 - not a very intimidating total by blind cricket
standards. At one point though, it looked like they might get much less.
Enter Ketanbhai Patel, one of the four fully blind or B1 players in the
XI (among the partially-sighted players, four are B2s - players who can
see up to three metres - and the remaining three are B3s or those who
can see up to six metres). As per the rules, B1 players have their
scores doubled and so, when they click, they can make a huge difference
for their team. Today, Ketanbhai clicked. He scored 98 off 43 balls,
caught and bowled two short of a rare B1 century.
Pakistan came into the final unbeaten, and are the only team to make it
to the finals of all four global blind cricket tournaments to date -
this one, and the three 40-overs World Cups before this. They won two of
those titles, the most recent being a victory over India in Islamabad
in 2006. This time round, though, the very vocal home crowd wasn't
behind them and the pressure seemed to get to Pakistan. They lost
wickets in a hurry and the run outs in the innings showed that they were
nervous.
By the time the final over began, the game was over and the Indian fans knew it. Most left the shade of the shamiyanas
(tents) surrounding the field, and crowded the boundary boards. The
moment the final ball was bowled, and the 29-run win official, they
spilled on to the field despite the best efforts of the volunteers and
the police. Photographers with cameras flashing, schoolchildren draped
with flags, physically challenged in wheelchairs … they were all out
there. Some sprayed bottled coke on others, while the crackers went off
in the background.
Over the next hour, the Indian visually-impaired team was hugged and
hoisted on shoulders and raucously celebrated. After the speeches -
several of them - mementos were handed out to all the teams by former
Sri Lanka captain Arjuna Ranatunga and former India wicketkeeper Syed
Kirmani, among others. The star player of the tournament, India batsman
Prakash Jairamaiah, was garlanded and India captain Shekhar Naik was
handed the trophy. Of course, there were a few well-deserved cheques
handed out too.
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