Team India
Visakhapatnam: Just a day after being left soggy by incessant showers, the ACA-VDCA Stadium is now completely dry and ready for the second cricket ODI between India and the West Indies to be held here tomorrow.
The Andhra Cricket Association has more than doubled the strength of their groundsmen to get the venue ready in time.
Such is their preparation that ACA curator K Naga Mallaiah is 100 per cent confident of a match taking place even if it rains the whole night.
Citing the example of the India A series here, he said: "That time, it rained the whole night but such was our sewage system that we did not have a single wash-out. The ground was ready by morning."
"The match is on 100 per cent, even if it rains tonight. All we need is a few hours before the match to get the stadium ready," he told PTI.
The good news is that the deep cloud formation because of the 'Cyclone Helen' has dispersed leading to occasional sunshine on the eve of the match and there is no rain forecast for tomorrow as well.
"We knew that there would be a cyclonic formation towards mid November. Accordingly, we prepared the outfield with more sands and organic manure to keep the grass alive even as the cover is on for days," the curator added.
The ground was 90 per cent covered with the rain, there was no seepage, he said adding they have brought two more super soppers to make the ground ready.
Deprived of an International match for two years, the city is also looking forward to tomorrow's game. The tickets for the 27,000 capacity stadium were sold out on the first day itself.
"No ticket is available, but still we're trying best to manage a couple by tomorrow. I went to see IPL but nothing beats an International match," Subhabkar Bhattacharya, an engineering student who hails from Kolkata, said.
He had come to the stadium with a group of friends to catch a glimpse of the the Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Co, who did not turn up for practice along with their Windies opponents as the wicket was damp.
Even though there was nobody from both the camps, a lot of people flocked to the stadium and something similar was seen at the team hotel on Rama Krishan beach also.
The ACA is celebrating their diamond jubilee year.
