Meanwhile 8230;. Heat hits Rach

8226; Indian coach Gerhard Rach became the first casualty of the oppressive heat and humidity here when he had to be treated for heatstroke and dehyderation midway through the game. Rach, who has been suffering from diarrhoea and low pulse rate in subcontinental conditions for some time now, had to be administered a lot of fluids and was then adminstered a sugar syrup to prop up his blood sugar level.

He managed to get off the dressing room mat but couldn8217;t come out with the team in the second half. Despite criticism on scheduling the matches around midday, the IHF has not done anything. 8216;8216;It was so hot and humid, we did not play at all in the first 10-15 minutes, we just passed the balls across to preserve our energy for later,8217;8217; said Pakistan penalty corner specialist Sohail Abbas. Pakistan manager Samiullah Khan joined in, saying, 8216;8216;It was very tiring, even sitting out in the team emclosure. The timings are all wrong.8217;8217; Chandigarh and Amritsar might be worse.

Crowds come in but security keeps them out

8226; If you thought an afternoon hockey match might not be able to bring in the crowds, you were both wrong and right.

Wrong, because more than 7000 people did turn up on a working afternoon. Right, because the posse of security guards outside the ground ensured people without passes were not encouraged. There8217;s more. As the two teams finished warming up, a huge crowd rushed on to the field, stopping short of invading the turf. And while the security was masterly in keeping the media away from the players, they were nowhere to be seen when needed the most.