There was hardly a buzz around the Wankhede Stadium this morning prior to the commencement of the fourth and penultimate ODI between India and England. Despite it being a Sunday,there was only a sprinkling of spectators trying to get into the stadium,which had hosted the World Cup final on April 2 in front of a jam-packed crowd that went into delirium when India clinched the coveted title,an hour before the start of the day-night match. When the first ball was bowled by India's Praveen Kumar. the 33,000-capacity stadium was less than one-fifth full and some stands were virtually empty. The taxi drivers too were not much aware that a ODI match featuring World Cup-winning skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men was scheduled to begin later in the afternoon. It could not be ascertained for certain whether the lack of interest in the series,which was billed as redemption rubber and has been sealed by the home team in its favour by winning the third match at Mohali on October 20,was due to the dead rubber syndrome,cricket fatigue,rates of tickets,absence of top players including crowd favourite Sachin Tendulkar or the approaching Diwali festival. Tickets for the lower portion of the popular Sunil Gavaskar stand in the eastern part of the revamped stadium cost Rs 1,000 but the upper tier with better viewing gallery cost Rs 4,000. North and West Stand tickets cost Rs 2,000,according to the Mumbai Cricket Association sources. Just under a month later the same stadium is to host the third and final Test between India and West Indies,not among the biggest draws in world cricket any more. Sources in the MCA are already voicing their concern that crowd response for the Test match too would not be appreciable.
