Two Bangladesh batsmen vomit while batting in Delhi

The pollution levels in India’s capital New Delhi and the NCR have been extremely high in the last few days. Right after Diwali, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital has deteriorated at an alarming rate. Due to the crop-stubble burning and the smoke from the crackers, smog has completely engulfed the city. The Bangladesh players also felt the worst effects of this pollution in the 1st T20I.

As reported by ESPN Cricinfo, Soumya Sarkar and one more player vomited during the first game of the three-match series. While there were a few talks about rescheduling the game, it wasn’t possible as there wasn’t enough time for the same. The Bangladesh Cricket Board’s chief Nazmul Hasan also earlier expressed disappointment about the BCCI not shifting the venue for this game.

Mushfiqur Rahim wasn’t much bothered by the air pollution

While there have been complaints about air pollution, Bangladesh’s veteran wicket-keeper batsman Mushfiqur Rahim didn’t seem to be bothered much. Speaking after the game, he said he was more interested in the bowler he was facing. He added that they have come to play their biggest bilateral series in India. Thus, he noted that these things do not matter much.

“Personally, this air pollution is nothing for me,” the wicket-keeper batsman said after the match. “I was much more interested in which bowler I was facing. Playing against India in front of a big crowd isn’t something Bangladesh team gets every day. I think we have come to play our biggest bilateral series, so these things don’t matter.”

BCCI’s new president, Sourav Ganguly, also spoke about the matter before the game. He assured that the scheduling for the future games will be done in a more practical manner. Ganguly seems to have understood the problem about scheduling games in north of India during the winters and post-Diwali.

“In future, when we schedule, especially in the northern part of India during the winter, we will have to be a little bit more practical,” Ganguly had said. “I know post-Diwali it’s a bit tough in the north. I hope everything goes fine.”