It's a huge surprise, they deserved on-field send-off: Kumble on Kohli, Rohit's Test retirements
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New Delhi (PTI): The "quiet" Test retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma ahead of the tour of England came as a "huge surprise" to legendary spinner and former India captain Anil Kumble, who believes the two senior batters deserved an on-field farewell.
Kohli announced his retirement from Test cricket on Monday, bringing the curtains down on an illustrious red-ball career in which he played 123 matches, scoring 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, including 30 centuries.
This was after Rohit decided to step away from the longest format last Thursday.
"It is a huge surprise. Two outstanding, great players retiring on the back of few days. I didn't see it coming. It has certainly caught me off guard. I thought he has a few more years left in him, especially at the Test level," Kumble said on Kohli on 'ESPNCricinfo'.
"He's playing only the ODI format now. No player leaves with any regret and I am sure he would have thought through this and ultimately it is the player's call."
Kumble, who ended as India's leading Test wicket-takers with 619 scalps, said players of such stature should have been given an opportunity to bow out in front of fans.
"It is a very quiet exit. Every player deserves to leave on his terms, but I think on the field. We spoke about this when R Ashwin retired as well, right in the middle of the series he announced his retirement and came back (to India from Australia).
"Right now, Rohit Sharma a few days ago and then Virat Kohli. I think all three of them deserved a proper send off on the field. I strongly believe people who matter need to address that. I know it is a social media age, yes the fans want to be there, there would have been plenty of fans and have a roaring send off.
India are scheduled to tour England for a five-match Test series starting June 20. Kumble said Kohli could have played a crucial role during the challenging assignment.
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
