Bollywood, bhangra and a glut of sixes

It wasn't a packed house at Kingsmead by any stretch of imagination - there were plenty of empty seats around the stadium - but those who were around were so vocal that the numbers didn't matter. And there was no question which team had the maximum support: it was an Indian night in every sense. Their supporters easily outnumbered England's fans, India's performance in the field outdid England's, and the dance numbers blaring from the loudspeakers were more Bollywood and bhangra than rock and hip-hop.

Funky B, the DJ at the ground, clearly knew her audience and even on a day of such exciting cricket, some of the loudest cheers were reserved for the music. Sometimes the cheers were so loud, and the groans when the music had to be stopped for play to resume so evident, that it seemed the crowd would rather be jiving to Bally Sagoo and co than watching the cricket.

That, of course, was before Yuvraj Singh came to the crease. The decibel levels increased after each six, and when the final one went into orbit, the crowd went crazy well before the ball cleared the ropes. Quite appropriately, the players went into the innings break with Chak De screaming over the speakers. Expect more of the same if the Indians get going in their final Super Eights game against South Africa on Thursday.

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In the midst of such a deluge of fours and sixes, spare a thought for the cheerleaders, who were yo-yoing up and down from the stage almost every other ball through the Indian innings. In all, the Indians pelted 26 boundaries - 15 fours and 11 sixes - in 20 overs. And in the penultimate over it got especially demanding, as the dancers had to hop up and down after every ball - with the mood Yuvraj was in, they might as well have stayed up for the entire over. Not surprisingly, some of those cheerleaders were visibly short of breath during the innings break. It was a well-earned break, if there ever was one.