Nasser Hussain lauds the Chennai spirit after cyclone

Former England captain Nasser Hussain has a deep connection with Chennai. He was born in Madras in 1968. No wonder why the Englishman was happy to be back in the city. However, it was all devastating scenes in the city when he arrived this time. The Cyclone Vardah had hit the Indian coast recently and Chennai was one of the most affected cities by the calamity.

Despite the disaster, the groundsmen of TNCA and the BCCI are trying their best to get the field fit for the final Test between India and England. Nasser is hopeful of witnessing a good Test match in the days to come. He was most impressed with the spirit of people in the city. The former England captain mentioned that the people are cooperating so well to bring life back to normalcy in the city after the disaster. In a conversation with India Today, Nasser Hussain cited one such incident.

He quoted, “I went down to the ground today and you know it’s utter devastation around Chennai. But the community spirit is absolutely amazing here, there’s people on the back of their bikes with chainsaws. I saw a tree down with guys trying to chop it in half so that bikes and cars can go through it. Around the periphery of the ground its utter chaos. But the community is trying to get back to normal and it’s been unbelievable spirit from what I’ve seen.”

Assessing the playing conditions at the venue, Hussain was visibly happy with the way groundsmen have worked. He mentioned that the ground looks good and it is only the periphery of the stadium that looks in utter chaos. “The ground looked okay but the nets were just gone, they were just washed away. I can’t see anyone having a net all week. All around the periphery was a bit wet. I think the Test match will be okay unless the ICC say there’s some kind of health and safety issue with spectators getting in and out of the stadium because there is still bit of devastation around the stadium,” mentioned the former English cricketer.

The pitch curators are trying every trick possible to get the venue ready for the ultimate show down. They used coal to dry up the pitch. Indian spinners were seen having a look at the pitch and they were content with what they saw. “I saw the pitch today they were putting coals, almost like a barbeque of coals, on the pitch because they were trying to dry the pitch after the cyclone. Ashwin was down there looking at the pitch with Kumble and they both looked pretty pleased with what he saw,” reaffirmed Nasser Hussain.

On a personal note, he added that he caught up with a few people in his ‘home town’. “It’s my hometown Chennai, so I’m pleased to be back. I popped into the Madras Cricket Club just to say hello to a few people. It’s good to be back here and I’m hoping for a good weeks cricket,” he concluded.