MUMBAI – Indian cricket fans clung to their dreams of a World Cup win on home soil Saturday as tens of thousands of people converged on Mumbai for the tournament climax under heavy security. Mumbai’s sweeping Marine Drive promenade — normally heaving with noisy traffic — was transformed into a sea of blue India shirts, as the road was shut to all but match traffic and fans queued to get into the ground.
Many had the saffron, white and green Indian tricolor draped around their shoulders or painted on both cheeks while roadside vendors were doing a brisk trade in fantail turbans in the national colours. A roar and shouts of “Chak de India!” (Come on India!) went up shortly after 12:30 pm local time (0700 GMT) as the Indian and Sri Lankan teams arrived at the Wankhede Stadium. “It’s special to see India here at home,” said Satish Sharma, 52, who had travelled all the way from Ferryhill in northern England with his nine-year-old son, Shivam, to see the match.
“The next one won’t be for another 20 years and I’ll be 75 then. It’s been my lifetime’s ambition,” the businessman told AFP. “Normally I prefer to watch matches on the big screen but I just wanted to come to feel the intensity and the roar of the crowd,” added Anup Isaac, 36, who works in Dubai as an engineer. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
The match is Mumbai’s highest-profile sporting event since the 2008 attacks in the city, which saw 10 militants kill 166 people at landmark targets, including the Taj Mahal Palace hotel where the teams are staying. Some 3,500 police personnel were out in force to ensure the safety of the two teams and the 32,000 spectators, who include both countries’ presidents. Khaki-clad police equipped with bamboo sticks were joined by paramilitaries with full body armour and automatic weapons, as coastguard and navy patrols kept watch on the Arabian Sea and a no-fly zone was imposed over south Mumbai.
Fans were being frisked and searched for an extensive list of banned items, including food, drinks and electronic equipment, before entering, as police kept watch on a network of security cameras. Despite the stringent measures, ticket touts were still seen around the stadium, seeking to cash in on the clamour for seats.
Television news channel NDTV on Friday said its reporter had been offered black market tickets for the sell-out game for up to $3,300 each.
Cricket’s governing body has been criticised for only making available 4,000 tickets to the general public and many of the fans spoken to by AFP said they had got seats through sponsors. Those who said they had bought seats were reluctant to divulge how much they had paid. The Mumbai Mirror tabloid on Saturday said that customs officers at the city’s airport even offered to waive import duty on a replica of the World Cup trophy in return for seats at the final.
While India fans flocked to the city from New Delhi, Kolkata and beyond, there were only a smattering of Sri Lanka fans — and not all of them from the island nation. “I think Sri Lanka is going to win,” said Krishn Chopra, 16, from New Delhi. “I’m Indian but I’m supporting Sri Lanka. I just think they have a better team.” With India favourites to win the trophy for the first time since 1983, newspapers summed up the mood of expectation, with many focusing on whether local hero Sachin Tendulkar could secure a victory on his home ground.
“A Nation Holds Its Breath,” The Times of India daily said on its front page. The Hindustan Times quoted batsman Gautam Gambhir as saying that he would dedicate an India win to the victims of the Mumbai attacks. Indians from cycle-rickshaw drivers and Bollywood film stars to the prime minister have been swept up in the anticipation, with an Indian swimwear model even pledging to strip naked for the team if they win.
Cycle-rickshaw driver Sheru Khan, 35, showed his dedication by riding nearly 1,500 kilometres (930 miles) from his home in northern Uttar Pradesh state to Mumbai after being promised a free ticket by a local politician.
