The ongoing fourth Test match between India and Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium started on an unusual note. Cricket took the back seat as it was overshadowed by the political event featuring Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese.
The teams were not even allowed to warm up on the field before the game in an unexpected and bizarre turn of events as the focus remained firmly on the political event. When Rohit Sharma and Steve Smith were waiting in the middle of the ground for the toss, both the prime ministers completed a lap of honour of the enormous ground in a vehicle featuring oversized cricket bats and stumps on its rear end.
I’ve seen a lot in both cricket and politics but nothing quite like the last 20 minutes, and more to come. #INDvAUS pic.twitter.com/Fjs9psn673
— Adam Collins (@collinsadam) March 9, 2023
Rohit Sharma and Steve Smith receive caps:
Before coming out to toss, Rohit Sharma and Steve Smith received Test caps from Prime Ministers. Both the captains walked up to the Prime Ministers who were standing on makeshift stage before Modi handed Rohit his Test cap while Smith received it from Albanese.
After handing the caps, the Prime Ministers and the captains held each others’ arms and raised them, much to the delight of the Ahmedabad crowd.
Here is a clip of the moment:
The Honourable Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modiji presents the special cap to #TeamIndia captain @ImRo45 while The Honourable Prime Minister of Australia, Mr Anthony Albanese presents the cap to Australia captain Steve Smith.@narendramodi | @PMOIndia | #INDvAUS pic.twitter.com/8RH70LOx0v
— BCCI (@BCCI) March 9, 2023
Meanwhile, Steve Smith won the toss and elected to bat first in the fourth and final Test of the series. The series is currently at 2-1 in India’s favour. The momentum is with Australia after their thumping 9-wicket win in the third Test and they would be looking to make the most of it.
India, on the other hand, would be desperate to get back to winning ways and clinch the series as well as book their place in the final of the ICC World Test Championship.
Talking about the ongoing game, Australia have made a steady start. At the time of writing this report, the visitors were on 26 for no loss.