A Rant against the HCA, and a Nostalgia trip

Well, to paraphrase the punchline from Jurassic Park, this is a post 25 years in the making. 

For folks who are not aware, the Hyderabad Cricket Association is one of the several 'state' organization affiliated to the BCCI. Hyderabad is one of the few cities who have an association of their own, other being Baroda and Mumbai. Other regions like Vidarbha and Saurashra also have their separate association (outside of the MCA and the GCA), but that's beside the point.

The reason behind this post is simply this. Hyderabad was allotted a match after 3 long years recently. In fact the match is on as I type this, and not for the first time, the HCA made a mess of it, and it wont be the last. This rant is a list of all my experiences of watching Cricket in the city. Seems simple? You wish!

It was impossible for anyone born in India in the 80s or 90s, and being even mildly interested in sports to not go cricket mad by the time he/she were 7-8 years old and so it was with me and my friends. I had watched a Duleep trophy final in 92-93 which was a free entry and there was a Ind-SL one dayer which my parents didnt take me to, but then the World Cup came back to India in 1996 there was no way I was going to miss being a part of that.

1.     1996, West Indies v Zimbabwe, The Wills 1996 Cricket World Cup at the LB Stadium - my first taste of International Cricket, and amazingly, maybe the most convenient time spent at the Cricket in Hyderabad! Maybe because it was part of the World Cup, or the crowd was less being a non-India match, it was fairly comfortable. Arrangements at the ground were decent, I remember going to a nearby eatery and having some snacks at the break. My most vivid memory is of my Dad whistling with two fingers in his mouth as Ambrose ran in to bowl. I was so impressed! Lara hit couple of straight sixes to close out the one sided contest.

2.     1996, India v S Africa, Titan Cup at the LB Stadium - My first experience of the horror show that is the HCA. While tickets were sold at some retail outlet, there were thousands of duplicate tickets printed and sold by counterfeiters. The tickets didn't even have simple holograms, which the '96 World Cup tickets did. When myself and Dad went to the stadium, snaky queues stretching to the Nizam college ground hinted at foul play. Finally we were lathi charged and went home disappointed, having missed the chance to watch SRT in action for the first time. A refund provided was small consolation for a 13 yr old dying to see his heroes in action for the first time. 

3.     1997, India v Pakistan, Siyarams Cup (Unofficial tournament) at the LB Stadium - Three of us convinced our parents, went to SBI where the tickets were being sold, and walked to the stadium and back, only for the match to be rained off. My abiding memory of this match is in fact of the Hyderabad crowd being split into Ind and Pak supporters and liberally raining abuses on each other! Quite an experience.

4.     1999, India v NZ, bilateral series at the LB Stadium - Another chance to watch SRT in action. We made it to the stadium at 7am for the 9:30 am match (this was the day after Diwali) to avoid a repeat of the Titan Cup experience. SRT didnt disappoint, hitting 186* but God forbid if anyone in our stand knew the score. The scoreboard was not visible from our stand at all. Some person with a radio said SRT finished on 172 or something, and that is what I believed, till I watched the news at night 😛. 

5.     2002, India v Zimbabwe, bilateral series at the LB Stadium - While the match was awesome and Yuvraj and Kaif gave a precursor to their heroics at the Natwest final later that year, the problems at the ground were aplenty. There was precisely ONE urinal for the whole of our stand and its anyone's guess how we would've managed. We literally counted each run this time to keep a tab on the match and only when Maninder Singh announced at the MOM presentation did we know Yuvraj had got 80 off 60! There was no free water available and me and my friend had to struggle to get few 'water packets' sold at princely sums. 

All this time, we only used to purchase tickets in the 'Squatting' category which were the cheapest. This meant we simply sat on the concrete stairs like structure which goes around the stadium. There would always be too many people in the stand, what with police and others getting 'their people' in, so as we sat our knees were shut tight. The throat would be sore the next day from the shouting, and the thighs would be cramped from the constant getting up and down. Its was like 'keeping for a 100 overs straight. However, till the 1999 match, we were always allowed to carry our food as the security 'concerns' were fairly low. That, or it hadn't occurred to them that this was a easy mode of fleecing the customers. 

This is where things start to get ugly, or maybe as we became older it was plain to see how we were being cheated.

6.     2003, India v New Zealand, bilateral series at the LB Stadium - we had resolved not to subject ourselves to the 'squatting' tickets but the HCA had other ideas. Tickets were to be sold at some bank branches and were promptly declared 'Sold out' within an hour. We had our semester exams and had asked a friend to queue up and he didn't risk being lathi charged for a ticket. Shameless behaviour if you ask me ;)  

Another classmate fortunately had a spare ticket and called me on the morning of the match to see if I could join. I wasn't going to refuse, even in the middle of the semester exams. This was again a case of counterfeit tickets being sold. Queues outside the ground were huge. There was no way the miniscule LB could've housed all those folks.

We slyly jumped across queues and got in (not proud of it today). Dravid scored the fastest 50 by an Indian and hundreds again from SRT and Viru. This turned out to be the last match I was ever to watch at the LB Stadium. 

The LB Stadium, situated in the center of the city, belonged to the SAAP (Sports authority of Andhra Pradesh) which is the state govt owned sports body which manages Olympic sports and the like, and not to the HCA, which is under the BCCI, a private organization. As a result, it was even more badly maintained than the Uppal stadium is today. 

Any event worth having was always at the 'LB' as we called it. 

• NTR died in '97. Where do you think his mortal remains were kept for people to pay their respects? The LB Stadium of course. 
• Election rallies? Same. 
• 'State Christmas function?' - the LB Stadium of course!!

Fun fact - the first season of the now defunct, Zee-run  ICL (Indian Cricket League) was entirely played at the 'LB' as Hyd Cricket moved to a new home. 

 

The 'LB' Stadium (Image from Wikipedia)

The HCA was allotted a land by the then government at Uppal, in the eastern part of the city. Visaka Industries gave a hefty amount to the HCA for the stadium to bear their name, and it was thus called as the 'Visaka Stadium'. After some typical delays, random lawsuits etc, the new stadium was finally ready and cricket lovers in the city began to dream of better days ahead. Due to the stadium being under the association ownership, Hyderabad was also elevated to a test center. 

However, the HCA and the designers seemed to be under the misapprehension that they were building a stadium for Toronto or Dharmasala. There is no other way to justify not having a roof over a stadium in Hyderabad, where the max. day temperature is >30C for 330 days in the year. A minimal consolation for the public was bucket seats throughout and an end to the torturous 'squatting' days. 

Its another matter that YSR renamed the stadium after Rajiv Gandhi, who had as much to do with Hyderabad Cricket as Donald Trump. Visaka were paid off and packed off unceremoniously, without so much as a thank you for providing the cash upfront. 

The first match in the new stadium was between Ind and SA in 2005, which I missed as I was off working in Bangalore, where I could go and watch a test match for the first time. It was a pleasant experience not being fleeced in the name of food for the first time, and such a relief at getting free water and using clean toilets! I felt like a king.  

The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, better known as the 'Uppal Stadium' (Image from Wikipedia) The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, better known as the 'Uppal Stadium' (Image from Wikipedia)

7.     2010, India v New Zealand 2nd test match at the Uppal Stadium - first test match in hometown. Knowing the roof situation, got tickets for the N stand, which had a roof. A roof was put in post-facto at either ends (only) later, but this is so high up that its only useful when the sun is right behind or over it. We sat one whole session in hot sun, paying more than a 100 for a 1L water bottle. Only food available was fried snacks, which is the worst thing you can have when sitting in the sun. 

This was also the start of random security restrictions. How dare anyone carry a pair of binoculars! Not allowed. Food? Not allowed. Banners? Nope. 

Post lunch we sneaked into the ground floor stand which had a roof, even though the view wasn't great. Harbhajan hit a ridiculous 100 after the big guns failed. 

8.     2012, India v New Zealand, 1st test match at the Uppal Stadium - forgettable and uneventful match, lots of rain on the third day meant cars parked on the main road were in 4ft deep water. Luckily I had parked much ahead on higher ground. 

9.     2013, India v Australia, 2nd test match at the Uppal stadium - I had been to Chennai for the first test where MSD got that famous 200. The difference couldnt have been starker. Not only did they allow my fantastic pair of binoculars in, but had a different menu for breakfast, lunch and tea, all at reasonable prices. Hyderabad had pizzas with only cheese and no toppings for Rs. 500.

Also learning the lesson from the 2012 test, I made it a point to only purchase the S Stand tickets which is the ONLY stand which is mostly under the shade in daytime. That said, that particular stand was blown away in a storm/rain three years back in 2019 and has still not been repaired. I can see it in the live telecast as I type this. Added to it the debris in every nook and corner, filthy toilets for what is a new stadium, seats littered with bird droppings... I can go on and on. By contrast the Ahmedabad stadium for the Ind-End day night test in 2020 was SPIC and SPAN! It was comparable to a multiplex/mall. 

I had blogged this in Cricinfo then – 

Day 1

"Quite simply, the only things we were allowed to carry were wallets and car/bike keys. Mobile phones, banners, and even binoculars were not allowed, which meant we had to walk back almost a kilometre to keep it safe in the car. I spotted an elderly lady using one later on though. Wonder how she got it past the "tight" security"

Day 2

"We had learnt our lesson yesterday and had a (very) heavy breakfast before coming into the ground, so as to not be dependent on the Hyderabad Cricket Association's whims and fancies when it came to catering arrangements. Sure enough, there was no packed rice box available today and the crowd had to be content with six-inch pizzas being sold at exorbitant prices. At least there were more water dispensers, which was a bit of a relief."

Sambit Bal on the same day had this to say about the stadium and callousness of officials in general –

"India, we are breathlessly told, now boasts of 43 international grounds. Can a dozen not be found where spectators aren't subjected to melting under the sun? Or can money not be found to put roofs over every inch of the grounds where spectators are expected to spend 45 hours over five days?"

I had more or less given up on watching one dayers and T20s by now, what with the much crowded stands, and the stupidity of booking tickets online and then going to the Gymkhana to collect the physical tickets which continues to this day. 

The TNCA (Tamil Nadu Cricket Association) and the KCA (Karnataka Cricket Association) are guilty of the same thing. There is no way a person not in the city can plan to be in the city to watch a match, unless he gets someone to collect the tickets on his behalf, which is what I had to do, twice in each city. That said, facilities at the ground are so much better. Chennai is heaven for aficionados with the very knowledgeable crowd. 

To their credit, the Gujarat Cricket association started the tickets sale much early and posted them home. It is another matter I did not get a refund for days 3,4 for a match which ended in two days, something which most organizers around the world do.  

Myself and friends had gone for a few IPL matches and Champions league matches and even the final. This experience was better in terms of ticketing, but the security restrictions, food prices, (un)availability of drinking water all stayed. It is almost accepted as a part and parcel of watching a match in Hyderabad. 

10. Which brings me to an instance from 2009 IPL, when MI were scheduled to play in Hyderabad on 26-April, which if you dont know, is SRT's birthday. I could not help going to Puma where tickets were supposed to be sold. Not surprisingly, was told its sold out. In one hr! 

For the first and to date, the last time, sought help from a very well connected friend of mine for the tickets (paid, not 'complementary'). When we got to the stadium, the queue was so long we knew it was worthless even queuing up and returned home. Either through collusion with the policemen, or due to counterfeit tickets, thousands of additional people had turned up. People in the stadium recounted horror stories of not being allowed go even go to the toilets, and people squatting on the stairs as the seats were full! I was relieved of not having to go through that. Oh, and SRT got out cheaply too. 

11. 2018, India vs West Indies, 2nd test, Uppal Stadium - The experience was similar; exorbitant food prices, rest of the stadium in the hot sun, I of course again took tickets for the S Stand under the shade. The security reached ridiculous proportions though. One elderly gentleman wasn't even allowed a newspaper in because, 'saar has said nothing to be allowed'. 

The security people employed in such places are a gem. It is like talking to a wall, except there is an infinitesimally miniscule possibility of the wall actually following what you say. Even a coccyx cushion I use for pain relief wasnt allowed, though I showed them on the Amazon app that it costs Rs.4K and unlikely I will chuck away at a player.

I even tried chipping away at the red tape and talking to 'higher ups' regarding this simple request but more of the same wall treatment. So imagine my surprise when I see people in the 'hospitality stand' using their binoculars! Clearly different rules for different people. 

12. The last time we went for the Ind-WI T20 in 2019, I had forgotten to remove my apple earphone out of my pocket. And of course it was on the 'saar said not allowed' list. Tens of people had hung their earphones on a tree, hoping it would somehow miss others' attention by the time they were back. Anyone can guess what happened here. 

With this T20 against Australia scheduled in the city after a gap of 3 years, we were again planning to go, because, simply, we cannot help it. It is some sort of a masochistic attitude towards official callousness, coupled with a genuine appreciate of the game. 

Of course, the online sale was declared 'sold out' in 5 hours flat. By the time we even found out sales had started, it was all gone. Nothing was declared in terms of any offline ticket sales, or even when the physical tickets could be picked. A friend had suggested we queue up on Thursday, but we knew too well it would result in chaos and even lathi charge, and thats exactly what happened. Mohd Azharuddin, the 'respected' President of the HCA, even had the gall to say publicly in a press conference that the had 'done nothing wrong'. I guess it means they are only pig headed and incompetent, not cheats.

So while this incident is what triggered this particular blog, and apologies if somewhere it got diverted into a nostalgia trip, but finally, I personally am at a stage where I feel much more convenient to go to a different city to watch a test match than subject myself to the scourge that is the HCA. 

Much of it is a reflection of the society in general wherein you are a nobody if you don't have 'connections'. Even tickets for 'The Avatar' in IMAX were being booked offline at one time. This extends to Cricket in the form of 'complementary passes' which are given out to the police, to judges, to random corporators, and used as leverage to garner random favours. All of which leaves fewer tickets to us, the paying public. We know this will never change unless we change as a society. The camera regularly pans to the people cheering in the stands. I wonder how many of the 50K today paid or queued up for it. 

In the meantime, I only ask not to have to go through Dante's seven rungs of hell only because I want to watch a cricket match. I am sure thousands of Cricket and other sports lovers in India share my view.

Next adventure: The Formula E race in Hyderabad. Queue up!