It was yet again a close cricket match at PCA Stadium, Mohali, even as India lost the fourth ODI to Australia by 24 runs dashing hopes of the spectators.

“We came especially to see Sachin bat and we are glad that he did well, though he missed the 17,000 run mark in ODIs. He crossed 12,000 runs in Test matches at Mohali and we were expecting him to achieve this feat also here,” said Ankit Punia, a bank employee.

It was a packed house at the PCA and Monday being a public holiday gave the city residents a chance to see their favourite stars in action.

While local lad Yuvraj Singh was unlucky to have been run out after a brief innings, Harbhajan Singh picked up a wicket on his first ball. He later played a cameo with the bat but failed to take India to victory.

“The ground has been lucky for Harbhajan and he always gives his best when he plays at Mohali. He gave India some hope in the end but his efforts went into vain. It was a close game and we all enjoyed the match a lot,” said Krishan Kumar, a Mohali resident.

For many, however, it was a two-hour long ordeal to get into the stadium and some fans could not watch the match despite having tickets.

“We came with the tickets at 1 pm but due to heavy rush the police did not let us in. We managed to get into the stadium around 5 pm. The police could have managed the crowd better,” said a student.

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