India and England players to wear black armbands in memory of former CM J Jayalalithaa

India and England will play the fifth and final Test match of the series at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The state was recently hit by dual strikes, first, they lost their beloved Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa who died of cardiac arrest and now the recent Cyclone Vardha has caused a lot of damage and disrupted life in the state. Ahead of the match, the TNCA has requested players from both the sides to wear black armbands during the course of the game as a mark of respect for the former CM.

“We have requested both England and India teams to wear black armbands as a mark of respect for the departed soul of our former CM. Because of this tragedy, the TNCA has decided against having any kind of function or felicitation during the match,” a senior TNCA official said.

Earlier there were speculations on the status of the ground after the Cyclone and if it would be fit in time for play. But TNCA secretary Kasi Viswanathan had ensured that they will leave no stone unturned to ensure the ground, as well as the pitch, was ready to host the game. “There is a lot of work to be done, but we are taking it up on a war footing. We are confident the match will start on time,” Viswanathan said.

“The assuring part is that the pitch and the outfield has not been affected by the cyclone. But the sightscreen has been damaged. The bulbs have blown off, air conditioners damaged.

“There have been hundreds of tree trunks lying in the road leading up to the stadium. Our challenge is to set everything in order in the next two days. I am confident we will be able to set everything right.” He said.