PUNE, April 28: If wishes had wings, a lot of people would be at Lords in England for the cricket World Cup kick-off on May 14. That, however, remains a pipe dream for most of us, resigned to watching our favourite sportspersons create records and win matches only on a 23 inch or 27 inch television, confined within the four walls of our houses, interrupted by the increasingly frequent power cuts.Puneites, however, given the extensive cricketing culture of the city, may be spared of such disappointments. For, under the guidance of former Indian captain Chandu Borde, a team of local entrepreneurs headed by Ajay Chaudhary is set to unveil the `Pune Cricket Carnival' that will be held in the city from May 14 to June 20 to coincide with the English extravaganza.The carnival, to be held at Unique Gardens, situated on the banks of Pawna river, which is a 20 minutes drive from the city will be a featuring a giant screen alongwith other television sets placed in the stands for comfortable viewing. The most popular feature, however, would be the uninterrupted power supply. The project aims to ``Bring England to Pune,'' according to Chandu Borde who adds that, ``We want to recreate the English ambience that cricket lovers worldwide recognise as the hallmarks of Lords, so as to enhance the excitement in watching the matches.''Therefore, during the period the five acres large Unique Gardens will be completely transformed to resemble the mecca of cricket, complete with the specially decorated gate, the policemen dressed up as the English bobbies and the famous beer garden. ``The aim,'' says Ajay, ``is to have something for everybody. For example, there will be a children's corner where the kids can play while the parents are engrossed in the live telecast of the matches on a giant screen. There will also be about 30 types of fast food and six restaurants alongwith other dishes that Puneites enjoy, a manual scoreboard for the ambience, various competitions, eminent cricketing personalities to discuss the matches with the audience, a beer garden, soft drink trolleys and so on.''The tickets for the venue that can comfortably accommodate upto 6,000 people will be prized tentatively at Rs. 50 per match. The event has also generated a lot of interest from the corporate sector, and the organisers say that they will be signing one major sponsor of every product. ESPN and Star Sports have shown interest in the project and will be covering it in a capsule during the India matches.This then, is the opportunity for a lot of wishes to come true.
