OWhat is the most important aspect of cricket? The stadium where the game takes place is more important than the teams, players and spectators who compete with each other. A stadium with clean seating for spectators, a players’ dressing room, a green outfield, and pitch and floodlights suitable for competition. But have you ever wondered what life is like for the groundmen who keep that stadium and its surroundings clean and safe? How many times have we seen them live on TV, running with pitch-covering covers when it rains during a match, and in their struggle to avoid water in those covers when it rains, and to make the field and competition more competitive.
But does anyone know about the facilities available to them which are the most important components of a cricket match? It often reminds me of the misbehavior of such people who are not even comfortable with the basics. Mosquito-infested night sleep and night-time workload are nothing but their curse.
But the groundmen working at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium as part of this IPL are now in a dream world. The reason is that they are now living in five-star facilities, where they spend the day fighting mosquitoes and mites.
Vasant Mohite, 57, one of the groundmen at Wankhede Stadium, is staying at one of Mumbai’s five-star beach hotels this IPL season. Wear or dresses designed by the House of Masaba (Masaba Gupta), a leading designer group. Vasant says that all these facilities that he is getting now are beyond his imagination. Not only him but all the groundmen in Wankhede will stay in such facilities for the next two months.
Cadbury, the world’s leading chocolate maker, is behind the creation of five-star facilities and designer costumes to reward these unappreciated heroes. There is also a bus facility to take them from the hotel to the ground and back. To call it anything other than a miracle.
Vasant says the situation was very different from before. “In the past, the situation was very difficult. If the shift ends late in the match, he will have to stay on the field. By the end of the game, all the trains were gone. Then you can not go back home. The latter route is to end up in a small room in the stadium itself. If you are there, you will not be able to sleep due to mosquito bites. In the absence of games we arrive at the ground at nine in the morning and return at six in the evening. But you have to arrive early on the competition days. The Mumbai Cricket Association pays double for that, ”says Vasant.
Vasant remembers with pride that two years ago, former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif came and hugged him. Vasant says he has been seeing Kaif since the under-19s. He is part of Wankhede as a dressing room attendant. His early job was to deliver towels and soap to the players and other staff. He says he has served everyone from legendary Sunil Gavaskar to the current Prithviraj Shah. He has witnessed the rise and fall of Sachin Tendulkar and witnessed the rise and fall of Vinod Kambli.
Vasant said that the image of Sachin Tendulkar returning from the pitch with tears after his retirement match in 2013 will never leave his mind. The groundmen, including Vasant of Wankhede, are thanking the organizers for providing so much comfort this IPL season.
Stoty Courtesy: Indian express