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What happened on the day Delhi pollution came between India and Sri Lanka Test match

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Rajarshi Gupta
Rajarshi GuptaDec 06, 2017 | 13:35

What happened on the day Delhi pollution came between India and Sri Lanka Test match

It was a typical Sunday (December 3) for cricket aficionados. Two Indian batsmen well set on a flat pitch and the prospect of runs, records, a rare triple hundred and more humiliation for the visitors.

Virat Kohli, warrior, leader and plunderer of runs, records and fame, had strolled his way through to a double century and the commentators could not stop swooning on air. There was a triple hundred for the taking and that was, for a while, the purpose of the Test.

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Until calamity struck. Delhi, for months, under the grip of haze and smog, finally engulfed the unsuspecting Sri Lankans. They were here to play a Test match hoping to put up a semblance of a fight against their far more superior opponents before being rolled over, but what they did not account for was the hazardous air quality in the national capital. 

After lunch on day two, several Sri Lankan fielders walked out in masks. It was a strange sight, scary for many. Never had cricket seen such a moment. For heaven's sake, they were not even anti-pollution masks. What the Sri Lankans wore were a bunch of hurriedly collected surgery masks provided probably by the DDCA.

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Two of Sri Lanka's bowlers had to walk off the field and their captain didn't think it was possible to carry on playing cricket as his men kept falling prey to air that was hardly breathable. 

That led to a 17-minute halt and two other interruptions. That, in turn, led to outrage from Kohli, who threw his bat away in disgust.

The commentary on TV could have put some of us to shame. The Sri Lankans were wearing masks to hide their faces after some shambolic performances against the all-conquering Indians, said one expert on live television.

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Another suggested this drama was going too far. Simply put, the show had to go on. A Kohli triple century was the perfect setting for a Sunday crowd at the ground and audience tuned in through TV.

But Kohli was distracted enough to fall agonisingly short of the landmark by 57 runs and once he had had enough of Sri Lanka and their antics, decided to declare.

Of course, it did not help Sri Lanka's cause that their batsmen did not wear masks. Neither did the Indians. 

So, was it all an elaborate conspiracy to deny Kohli his milestone? Sri Lanka probably just wanted to look for an escape route until it became clear just how toxic the air was and how impossibly difficult it was to play competitive sport in these conditions. 

Dinesh Chandimal needed medical attention while batting early the next day and a Sri Lankan bowler vomited not long after India's second innings resumed.

For all that's worth it was an embarrassing sight to see a visiting team being subjected to such torture. Sri Lanka have been forced to play through this. Doctors and medical experts would have you believe it wasn't safe to exert yourself in such hazardous air but who cares, really.

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Nic Pothas, the Sri Lanka coach, said his men came out vomiting. It was pitiable to hear the man in a press conference. The talk should have revolved around Kohli's dominance and Sri Lanka's inability to stop him. Instead, the dangerous air in Delhi we have all been so accustomed to breathing, took centre stage.

And make no mistake, there was plenty of bravado from the Indian side. The fielding coach pointed out Kohli did not need a mask during his marathon knock and Mohammed Shami came out to claim his colleagues were habituated to such air quality. Next day, he was the first Indian player to feel uneasy and had to eventually walk off. 

That was probably the evidence Shikhar Dhawan needed to realise the Delhi air was indeed dangerous but get, guess what: there's work to be done, in his words, there's a "farz" and that needs to be fulfilled.

By the end of this Test match, I would be cringing with the entire episode. As a professional whose primary role is to cover sports, I'd want to just shift my focus to India's tour of South Africa, waiting for the world to be okay again. 

Last updated: December 06, 2017 | 19:10
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