Cricket
While Delhi chokes, India's premier T20 tournament goes on
The BCCI has once again paid no heed to the environmental hazards in New Delhi and has scheduled the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in the capital.
A cricket match being played amidst high air pollution in Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium (Source: HT)
The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, one of the most important tournaments in the Indian domestic cricket calendar, is set to enter its knockout phase next week, from 16th November. The matches are set to be played in the country's capital, Delhi, despite the prevailing conditions there.
Delhi's air quality, like previous years, has taken a nosedive in the month of November once more. Delhi's current AQI is 471, and people have been advised to limit their outdoor activities to avoid hazardous air pollution in the city. However, as always, BCCI has paid no heed to the current situation in Delhi and scheduled the matches as early as 8.30 am, including one semifinal.
This is not the first time the Indian cricket board has organized a tournament in Delhi during deadly air pollution. Earlier in 2017, when an India-Sri Lanka Test was being played in Delhi, the Sri Lankan players wore masks to protect themselves. Some criticized the visitors for not being 'brave' enough like the Indian players, while some hoped the incident would bring some much-needed attention to environmental safety in the city. During the match, Sri Lankan fast bowler Suranga Lakmal threw up on the field and had to be escorted off the ground.
Yet again, in November 2019, a T20I was played between India and Bangladesh at Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium, despite the city reaching its worst AQI (810) for that year. The state government had shut down schools for safety measures, but many students were present in the crowd to watch their favourite cricketers in action. Even after protests from many environmentalists in the lead-up to the tournament, the matches continued. Even the International Cricket Council (ICC) did not try to step in and stop the game from happening. Similar to the 2017 situation, the tournament witnessed two Bangladeshi players being badly affected by the polluted air and retching on the field.
The situation in Delhi has reached such an extent that CM Arvind Kejriwal has called an emergency meeting on Saturday to tackle air pollution.
After the 2019 incident, BCCI had said it would take note of all conditions into account before organizing matches in Delhi in winter. However, it seems the BCCI is still stuck on taking notes and hence has again organized the Syed Mushtaq Trophy in Delhi, in complete ignorance of the dangerous smoke in the air.
