November 13
India takes the cake regarding crowd trouble

RAJKOT, India: Factbox on recent outbreaks of crowd trouble at cricket matches after the third One-day International between India and West Indies ended prematurely on Tuesday:

•March 1996, Calcutta, India: Sri Lanka were awarded the 1996 World Cup semifinal against India by match referee Clive Lloyd after fans rioted just before the end, with India on 120 for eight chasing 252 to win. Plastic bottles, fruit and stones were thrown onto the field, forcing the Sri Lankans to huddle in the middle of the pitch for safety, while fires were started in the stands. One hundred thousand people watched the game. Effigies of India captain Mohammad Azharuddin were burnt in Calcutta's streets after the game.

•February 1998, Wellington, New Zealand: Stuart Law was hit in the face by a bottle as Australia completed a 66-run win over New Zealand in a one-day match. Spectators among the crowd of 12,000 threw fruit, bottles and golf balls on to the pitch. Current Australia Steve Waugh was reported as saying: "Monica Seles got stabbed and there was a lot of security around her. In cricket people have a free rein at you all the time."

•February 1999, Calcutta, India: Pakistan's win over India in the Asian Test Championship followed crowd trouble over the final two days at Eden Gardens. Some of the 91,000 fans at the ground threw bottles and fruit on to the pitch, chanting "cheats, cheats!" after Sachin Tendulkar was controversially run out on the fourth day. Tendulkar appeared to ground his bat before accidentally running into Shoaib Akhtar, lifting his bat into the air after the collision only for his wicket to be broken. The incident led to an hour's delay and the trouble continued the next day. Baton-wielding police cleared the ground of around 50,000 spectators after a three hour 20 minute delay, leaving Pakistan to complete a 46-run win in a near-empty stadium.

•April 1999, Georgetown, Guyana: Match referee Raman Subba Row declared the fifth one-dayer between West Indies and Australia a tie after spectators invaded the pitch in the closing moments, preventing Australia's last pair from scoring the run needed to level the scores. Steve Waugh and partner Shane Warne were going for the third run off the final ball when the crowd ran on and stole the stumps, preventing Keith Arthurton from trying to complete a run-out. The result was not announced at the ground to ensure the Australians could leave in safety.

•April 1999, Bridgetown, Barbados: West Indies beat Australia to level the One-day International series 3-3, but only after Steve Waugh agreed to re-instate Sherwin Campbell following a run-out which sparked a riot. Bottles rained on to the pitch, one just missing Waugh's head as his team ran off the field. Campbell was run out after a collision with bowler Brendon Julian in mid-pitch. Waugh said he agreed to re-instate the batsman after local police advised him that his players' safety could not be guaranteed.

•June 2001, Edgbaston, England: Waqar Younis pleaded with hundreds of Pakistan fans who invaded the pitch as his team were about to complete a 108-run win over England in a triangular tournament also involving Australia. The fans invaded the pitch and stole the stumps, then refused to vacate the pitch for half an hour with Pakistan still needing one wicket to win.

•June 2001, Headingley, England: England captain Alec Stewart, his team four runs away from certain defeat, conceded the triangular series match after a premature pitch invasion by Pakistan supporters ended with a steward needing hospital treatment. The incident overshadowed Waqar Younis's seven for 36, the second-best bowling performance in One-day International history.

•June 2001, Trent Bridge, England: Steve Waugh, playing Pakistan in a one-dayer, led his side off after fireworks sent fans scurrying in all directions in a stand before a live firecracker was thrown near fielder Brett Lee. The Australians returned to the middle after 20 minutes.

•June 2001, Lord's, England: Australian all-rounder Michael Bevan was hit in the face by a full can of beer after his side routed Pakistan by nine wickets in the final of a one-day triangular series. The missile was hurled by an unidentified spectator as the crowd watched the trophy presentation on the pavilion balcony.

•November 2002, Rajkot, India: West Indies medium-pacer Vasbert Drakes was hit on his leg by an object from the stands while fielding at the boundary with India coasting at 200 for one from 27.1 overs while chasing 301 in the third One-day International of their seven-match series. Match referee Mike Procter of South Africa awarded the match to India, by 81 runs using the Duckworth/Lewis method, 90 minutes after the incident. This disturbance followed similar incidents earlier in the series at Jamshedpur and Nagpur, where play was stopped briefly after missile-pelting and unruly crowd behaviour.