Kolkata plans to party Day/Night

Kolkata, November 20

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, the former India captain, took a close look at the pitch today and said he is very excited, for he has taken on himself to ensure that everything goes well in the historical D/N Test.

Moments after inspecting the pitch, Ganguly said: “The pitch looks good. I am very excited. When have you last seen a Test match where first four days’ tickets have been sold out!”

Ganguly said there are plans to make the occasion memorable. “Sachin (Tendulkar), (Sunil) Gavaskar, Kapil (Dev), Rahul (Dravid), Anil (Kumble)… Everyone will be there. In tea time, there will be carts going around the stadium with former captains in them,” Ganguly said.

“There is a musical performance at tea time and at the end of the day there is a felicitation. Both the teams, former captains, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Chief Minister (Mamata Banerjee) will be there. Runa Laila will be performing, Jeet Ganguly will be performing.”

Army paratroopers are expected to fly into the stadium to start the proceedings, handing over a pink ball each to the two captains just before toss. This will be followed by the ringing of the Eden Bell by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

During the 40-minute dinner break, there will be a talk show featuring Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble and VVS Laxman.

Stars from other sports such as Abhinav Bindra, Sania Mirza, PV Sindhu and MC Mary Kom will also be honoured.

The Bangladesh team from their inaugural Test match will also be felicitated. Ganguly made his debut as Test captain in that match, played in Dhaka in 2000. — IANS