Barsapara Stadium Complex to be Serpent Free Ahead of the First ODI Match Between India and Sri Lanka

Taking a leaf out of the previous experience the authorities at Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati, the venue first ODI between India and Srilanka, Assam Cricket Association has hired The Pal (NGO) for thirty-five thousand to ensure that snakes do not find their way into the field during match hours. Special spraying has been done in the drains and periphery of the stadium which shall ensure that snakes are at bay.

“Last time I caught the snake, but this time that fear is less as winter has come now. The stadium authority has already used medicine so that snakes may not appear in the field” Dimbershawar Bodo, the person who caught the snake last time said.

Serpents have occasionally been an issue at the Barsapara complex. A snake crawling across the field interrupted play during the second T20 match between India and South Africa on October 2, 2022.

Following the seventh over of the Indian innings, a snake slithered out on the ground to stop the play for about five minutes – a very rare sight in an international match. The snake came out of nowhere from a small unnoticed pit to scare Wayne Parnell at the extra cover region. It then slithered into the square region. The groundsmen came rushing into the ground to capture it in a bucket.

“Apart from fogging to keep mosquitoes away, we are spraying the stadium, and the complex beyond with anti-snake chemicals,” ACA president Taranga Gogoi told journalists on Saturday.

Assam would be hosting the first ODI after a gap of almost five years.

“It was in 2018 that we organised an ODI between India and West Indies. We hope to ensure a well-managed game between India and Sri Lanka for the only cricket stadium of international standard in the northeast to host more bilateral or World Cup matches,” stated Devjit Saikia, Joint secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

Several players of Team India including Rohit Sharma Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer are expected to reach Guwahati on the 8th of January. ​

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