Holi comes early as India edge past WI, reach semis

Kolkata: Holi came early to Kolkata with the city breaking into a frenzied celebration on Sunday night – with more than a day to go for the festival of colours. As a calculated innings by Sanju Samson took India past West Indies at the Eden Gardens and into the semi-final of the T20 World Cup after a tense encounter, colours were splurged and crackers burst. Cricket fans celebrated through the night, leaving central Kolkata and various other parts of the city clogged with revellers.The city had come to a standstill on Sunday evening as the Men in Blue locked horns with the Windies in a virtual quarter-final. A loss would have thrown India out of the Cup. But it wasn't to be.
Bank employee Rishabh Ghosh Dastidar had flown into Kolkata from Mumbai with wife Natasha for the match. The couple wore India jerseys and cheered for Suryakumar & Co from the lower Club House tier. "We've travelled across the country for this game, only to witness and feel the pressure of a virtual quarter final. If you want to understand pressure, don't Google it, come sit at the Eden Gardens during an India World Cup game. The noise rose and fell with every ball like the entire stadium was breathing together. One minute, we're experts dissecting strike rates and field placements, the next we're clutching our heads because someone inside-edged past the stumps. When India finds the boundary, the place explodes with strangers doing high fives and for ten glorious seconds we're convinced the trophy is already ours," said Rishabh.It couldn't indeed have got more exciting than this – an Eden Gardens throbbing with 66,000 screaming fans in blue, a city with eyes fixed on screens with a billion hearts beating fast and slow with every run scored and saved. As Varun Chakravarthy castled Shai Hope, a frenzied howl went across the city. Every Indian six created a ripple of unbridled euphoria across Kolkata's homes, clubs, restaurants and neighbourhoods."The atmosphere was electric and the match a thriller. I loved watching Bumrah taking two wickets in an over. This was my first visit to Eden and the experience was memorable. The Indian victory was the icing on the cake," said Drishti Deb, a Tollygunge resident who sported an India jersey and cheered for the Men in Blue with friends.It had all the makings of a blockbuster the city has rarely witnessed in recent times, said Prashanta Pal, 36, who came to watch the match from Nadia with a large group of friends. "This was the game of the World Cup, a match from where India had to turn around and they did that in style. What a match it was though it seemed that West Indies had batted India out of contest. Indian batters proved equal to the task and pulled off a great win," said Pal.The victory left India two steps away from the World Cup. But for the city, the Cup was won on Sunday night.Restaurants spilled over with fans cheering as they munched on food and gulped beverages. "The atmosphere was electric and we could feel it. Our guests were not merely watching it but were left biting their nails. This was a must-win game and everyone felt the pressure," said Songhai owner Sudesh Poddar. The restaurant served a free drink for every six hit by India.