DINDIGUL: What you sow is what you reap. The latter, though, generally comes with the caveat of happening later rather than sooner. But, going by the way things shaped up during the first clash at the NPR College ground in Natham, the second edition of the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) is already nibbling on the fruit of the behind-the-scene hard work that has gone into organising the event.
“Work for the tournament at this venue began last year itself, when we wrapped up some renovation activities. Work was done on the outfield a couple of months ago. The wicket too was relaid to be more T20 specific,” explained N Venkataraman, secretary of the Dindigul District Cricket Association, who is also the man orchestrating all logistical activities related to this venue. “From last season till date, we’ve spent nearly `1.75 crore on this ground.”
And, as a justification for the return on investment on the aforementioned sum, Venkataraman on Tuesday had 3,600-odd waving, cheering reasons to show: a full-house witnessing the clash between Madurai Super Giant and local team Dindigul Dragons.
“The galleries and terrace account for 3,600 people. If you add overlapping and standing fans, the capacity goes up to nearly 4,000. Last year, the average footfall was around 3,500. Over-the-counter tickets for this match were sold out three days ago, and we expect a good turnout here.”
Just as Venkataraman completed the last sentence, he was accosted by a harried-looking event volunteer. The latter insisted on placing more barricades to help ticket-checkers from being overwhelmed by the influx of spectators. The talk shifted to security arrangements. On Sunday, a flare-up between security guards and localites who couldn’t get tickets ended up blocking highway traffic near the India Cements Ltd ground in Sankar Nagar (Tirunelveli), one among the other venues hosting TNPL clashes.
With that as contextual backdrop, Venkataraman and his team have put in efforts to ensure the safety of spectators. “We requested Dindigul’s Superintendent of Police to depute a team for the matches. Thirty five personnel — including an Inspector, a Sub-inspector, and a group of constables — are overseeing security here. Ten firemen are also on standby.”
Dragons breathe fire
Subramania Siva’s 41-ball 84 propelled Dindigul Dragons to a comprehensive 10-wicket win against the Madurai Super Giant.
Brief scores: Madurai Super Giant 117 in 19.1 ovs (Sunny Singh 3/29) lost to Dindigul Dragons 120/0 in 10.3 ovs (Subramania Siva 84 n.o).
rahulravi@newindianexpress.com