IND vs BAN | Kolkata turns pink as Day-Night Test inches closer
As India’s first-ever Day-Night Test match starts at the Eden Gardens on Friday, the city of Kolkata has slowly turned pink on advertising, media, and mascots. BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, meanwhile, confirmed that the tickets for four of the five days of the match had already been sold out.
The city of Kolkata - although still firmly blue - has responded well to the BCCI's sudden idea to host a historic day-night Test. A ball-shaped pink blimp hovers over Eden Gardens to signal the big event, while the various text-background versions of scoreboard plates of Liton Das and Virat Kohli — white with pink text, white with black text, and black with pink text — have been put up. The two mascots — Pinku and Tinku, the media personnel arriving in all-pink, and major advertisements hung up in pink all add to a festival-like occasion as Friday inches closer.
Another site to behold is the travelling Bangladesh fans — at least 5000 in number — who have crossed over to the other side of Bengal to witness history being made. One of them is Zeeshan Hasib, 48, who runs a financial consultancy firm and played for Sylhet Division in the 80s.
"I have watched Bangladesh play their inaugural Test match back in November 2000. In Kolkata, Bangladesh will be playing their first day-night Test match - and I think it is a historic event and I just wanted to be a part of the history. I will watch only the first two days of the Test match and will be back in Dhaka for work,” Hasib said.
"I am not wary about the fact that the first Test ended in three days. India is a tough team to fight with, especially in India where you will find most of the visiting teams struggling. They are the No. 1 Test team in the world. I am, however, expecting Bangladesh to fight back in Kolkata," he added.
Bullu Das, a helper in many capacities around cricket in Mirpur, mostly as a photographer's attendant, described his journey into the city for the match.
"I will witness history. I came here by bus, and it took nine hours through the Benapole border. I am staying around New Market [close to Sudder Street]. I will be having my meals there too," Bullu said.
Putting together this pink ball Test, which is well and truly underway before an actual being bowled, and Kohli's suggestion of five constant Test venues, Kolkata may well become India’s version of Australia’s pink Test tradition in Adelaide every year.
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