Cricket fans in the city woke up early on a warm Thursday morning to settle down in time for the India–Australia World Cup semifinal match.
Memes of employees faking health problems to skip work started doing the rounds of social media a day earlier.
Group screenings
Students and professionals planned well in advance to huddle together either at friends’ homes or restaurants and star hotels to watch the match on giant screens.
But, by early evening, the match turned out to be quite the dampener.
Private companies had made arrangements for live telecast on giant screens.
“We wanted to cut down on absenteeism and made sure employees on all floors watched the match without a break,” said a human resource executive of a software firm in Kandanchavadi on Rajiv Gandhi Salai.
Lessons for all
The outcome of the game might have been a disappointment, but eight-year-old K. Kamesh learnt the meaning of the word ‘retirement’, when he asked his teacher why Sachin Tendulkar was not playing in the match.
Manasa Ramakrishnan, who teaches Class III-A of Chennai Primary School, Taramani, could not slide in a television for her students.
What she did, however, was change the blackboard into a live scoreboard, replete with bits of trivia.
“I incorporated the match into the learning for the day as it was the perfect opportunity to teach various things, including history,” she said.
“While figuring out the run rate, simple division came in handy and, of course, we touched on geography and a history of the British rule too,” she added.
T. Tharani was fascinated at her teacher as she listened to stories of grit, hard work and the payoff it results in.
When she left for home, she told her teacher: “I will keep calling you to find out the score.”
