Cricket set for Eden return

Almost three years after they last hosted a one-dayer,BCCI's rotation policy finally reaches Kolkata.

When India and Sri Lanka last played at the Eden Gardens 34 months ago,rain had played spoilsport,the match had been abandoned,and nearly 100,000 people had returned home hoping for something more in their next brush at a ground that was considered the Mecca of Indian cricket. Little did they know,however,that there would be no international matches in the stadium for almost three years.

In a cricket board mired in politics,the rotation policy for venues is often a tool used to favour a particular state body,and to punish another for standing on the other side in the battle for supremacy. Kolkata,being the centre of the previous BCCI chief Jagmohan Dalmiya,became an obvious victim in recent years. It is only now,after a lot of water has flown under the bridge,after the Cricket Association of Bengal CAB chiefs rise to national ascendancy seems a distant dream,that full-flight cricket will return to the ground when India take on Sri Lanka in the fourth one-day international on Thursday.

The politics may have remained intact,but so much is different now in Indian cricket. Back then,Rahul Dravid was the captain and MS Dhoni was a rising wicketkeeper-batsman with far to go. Local hero Sourav Ganguly was back in the side after a gruelling battle with coach Greg Chappell,who was at the helm of affairs with the cricket World Cup just months away. Today,Ganguly has retired,Dravid no longer figures in ODIs,Chappell is long gone,and Dhoni is the undisputed leader of a team that is back on the rise.

He will be missing from the field on Thursday,however,serving a two-match ban for slow over rates,and Sehwag who led India to victory,and a 2-1 lead in the last game in Cuttack will be at the helm again. Another player on the sidelines will be Yuvraj Singh,ruled out of the series due to a finger injury.

In a series dominated by the batsmen save for a late burst by the Indian spinners in Cuttack where Ravindra Jadeja was the unlikely hero picking up four wickets for 32 the Eden Gardens is expected to throw up a 275-300 total.

Wicket talk

It has been a huge lull for the Eden Gardens. All the while,cricket was yearning to return home, said curator Prabir Mukherjee,choosing to make a statement on the three-year hiatus before talking about the pitch. Its a good wicket for batting. There will be no lateral movement,and the bounce will be true. The tinge of green will help hold the surface, he said,but did not commit on what a captain should do on winning the toss. Its a tricky situation. Theres nothing wrong with the surface but now,with parts of the stadium under construction,the evening breeze will come into play and help swing bowling. The dew could be a factor as well at this time of the year.

Bengal played three Ranji Trophy matches here this season. In one of them,against Saurashtra,they threatened to overhaul their first-innings total of 650,and eventually fell only a hundred runs short. Good players will score runs and take wickets. The track is not lopsided in anybodys favour, Mukherjee said,like any curator worth his salt.

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But as much as the the pitch,the focus on Thursday will be on the stands,the lush outfield,and on the fact that Kolkata is again,finally,a part of Indian crickets famous rotation.