Agra woman, standing in queue for five days, returns disappointed, but 60-year-old Pakistan supporter from South Africa is still hopeful of somehow managing a pass
Agra woman, standing in queue for five days, returns disappointed, but 60-year-old Pakistan supporter from South Africa is still hopeful of somehow managing a passAll she needed was two tickets one for her husband and another for herself. Ranju Rani, in her late thirties, came all the way from Agra with hopes in her heart. But the odds were stacked against her.u00a0
u00a0
u00a0
Ranju Rani has been standing in queue for five days, a pregnant Manisha is praying for Sachin's
century and Farookh Bhutala has never missed a Pakistan match.
Ranju said she stood in queue for five days, at a stretch, from March 24, the day she reached Chandigarh.
"I wake up at 5 in the morning and I reach the stadium by 6 am. Initially, I am happy to find myself among some of the first ones to reach the ticket counter, but I never manage to get a ticket as the counter never opens. Only once till date (on March 29) the counter was opened, but that too only for 15 minutes."
Pregnancy no hurdleManisha is five months pregnant and we found her standing at the fifth position of the ladies ticket counter at Mohali PCA stadium.
She had come all alone from Sector 22 in Chandigarh in an auto. Manisha believes if Sachin scores a century and she watches the match this would have a positive impact on the unborn baby.
"There is an old saying in our country. The child in the womb adapts to the kind of surroundings its mother witnesses.
With this believe I have been standing in the queue to get a ticket since eight in the morning. Maybe if I see Sachin scoring a century, my child would adopt the same flair and someday become as famous as him," she said.
Sixty-year-old Farookh Bhutala, came all the way from South Africa to watch the clash between India and Pakistan.
u00a0Bhutala, a Pakistani supporter, claims that he has been an ardent fan of the team and has not missed a single Pakistan match since 1993.
"I have seen all the Pakistan matches since then but never witnessed such an electrifying situation before.
u00a0
I watched all Pakistan league matches, but here in Mohali I am having trouble in getting a room or a ticket for the match. Earlier, I used to stay at the hotels where players would be put up, but this time I could not manage one."
Bhutala says he has been very close to many Indian as well as Pakistani players and also worked as a liaising officer for the Pakistan team in South Africa.
u00a0
"The players call me Africa Chacha and my wife cooks food for them whenever they are in South Africa. I am sure I will manage a ticket or pass," he said.
