Synopsis
On January 31, the Ranji Trophy match drew a remarkable crowd at Arun Jaitley Stadium. Anticipating a larger audience for Day 2, additional security personnel have been deployed to ensure a safe environment, particularly with Virat Kohli's expected performance.Key Takeaways
- Over 15,000 fans attended the first day.
- Enhanced security for Day 2 due to high attendance.
- Virat Kohli's presence is a major draw for fans.
- Security measures include personnel near the boundary.
- Delhi trails Railways by 200 runs at the start of Day 2.
New Delhi, Jan 31 (NationPress) After an impressive turnout of over 15,000 fans on the first day of the Ranji Trophy match between Delhi and Railways at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, a senior official from the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) informed IANS that additional security personnel have been assigned for the second day's play on Friday.
As the second day approaches, security staff outside the venue reported to IANS that all entry gates opened at 8 AM, anticipating a larger crowd eager to watch the legendary Virat Kohli in action. Fans who arrived as early as 6 AM were granted early access to the stands.
"The Delhi Police held a meeting with DDCA officials yesterday evening to discuss security protocols around the stadium and decided to enhance security for day two, particularly with the possibility of Virat Kohli batting for Delhi. Additional personnel have also been positioned near the boundary lines to prevent any intrusions during the match," the senior DDCA official conveyed to IANS.
This decision to bolster security near the boundary is noteworthy, given that on day one, a zealous fan ran onto the field from the Gautam Gambhir Stand to touch Kohli's feet, only to be escorted away by security during the 12th over. Kohli, stationed at the second slip, signaled to security not to harm the fan.
As for the match, Delhi will commence day two's play at 41/1 after 10 overs, trailing Railways by 200 runs. Yash Dhull, captain of India's victorious 2022 U19 World Cup team, and Sanat Sangwan will continue their innings, scoring 17 and 9 runs, respectively.
On the first day, wicketkeeper-batter Upendra Yadav scored an impressive 95 runs off 177 balls, helping Railways secure a total of 241 in 67.4 overs. He formed key partnerships of 104 runs with Karn Sharma, who contributed a fifty off 106 balls, and 59 runs with Himanshu Sangwan, who added a useful 29 runs to the score.
For Delhi, pacer Navdeep Saini and spinner Sumit Mathur each took three wickets, while fast bowlers Siddhant Sharma and Money Grewal secured two wickets each.
