Television crew were first to give up hopes of play in seventh ODI

Television crew members were the first to give up hopes of play in Navi Mumbai yesterday

Television crew members were the first to give up hopes of play in Navi Mumbai yesterday

IN vain: Ground staff at the Dr DY Patil Stadium in Nerul trying their best to clear the soaked covers to facilitate the start of the 7th ODI between India and Australia. pic/Atul Kamble

While everyone hoped against hope for the India-Australia match to be played as scheduled, the television crew had given up all hopes. So, even if the ground staff had managed to get the match started sometime during the day, TV telecast would have been minimal.

The crew had packed up most of their equipment by 2.30 pm and kept only a few cameras for minimum telecast. Apart from near impossible playing conditions, the TV crew was battling against their makeshift control room below the media centre which leaked badly, making it impossible for the crew to work at full strength.

Cool chief
Sometimes, it is destiny that calls the shots and any amount of effort can be unproductive. A classic case is the Dr Vijay Patil-led team who tried their best to ensure the seventh ODI between India and Australia successfully completed. But much to their dismay, things didn't turn out as they had hoped.

The rained off ODIu00a0the first international match at this venue was a tragedy of a cricketing kind. Dr Patil and his team had put in all their might to get the stadium ready for the seventh one-dayer but the script went awry as the elements conspired to turn the occasion into a damp squib.

Dr Patil must have been shattered, but one of his staff members involved in the preparation said he was not letting emotions get the better of him. "In fact, he was consoling me. He said: 'don't worry we have done our best but the weather gods were not with us. We should prepare for future games."

Three-hour wait
AS Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was expected to watch the game, there was heavy security at the stadium since morning. In fact, a member of Mumbai Cricket Association's media committee informed that even he had difficulty getting into the pavilion because of strict security.

"I had to wait for three hours at the Pavilion building before being allowed to walk from the sidelines of the ground to the media box," he said.

Easing tensions?
IT is learnt that the Australian PM Kevin Rudd who was invited for the last India-Australia ODI couldn't wait to make an entry. For, Rudd saw it as an opportunity to assure the Indian student community that Australia is a safe place for them.

The DY Patil University finalised a tie-up with the Griffith University, Brisbane. "Yesterday we had the inauguration of the degree course of the Bachelor of Exercise Sciences in a tie-up with the Griffith University,"informed an official of the university. Rudd is on a two-day tour
of India.