The Coronavirus has brought sporting activities to a standstill across the globe with major events being cancelled or postponed. It is no different when it comes to Mumbai's sporting scene. The normally bustling maidans are now bare and the situation has created a huge dent in the pockets of groundsmen (maalis), umpires and scorers.

Himanshu Parua, 55, is a groundsman at Cross Maidan's LIC plot of pitches. But the past two weeks have been tough for Parua as he doesn't have enough money to even buy groceries for himself. "I am stuck here, while my family is struggling back home since I am unable to send them money due to the lockdown. The person who manages the LIC plot, gave me R1,000 when he came here last month. That amount was exhausted before the lockdown was announced. I've called to inform him about my condition and he said he would try and arrange something," Parua, who earns R10,000 per month for attending to the pitches, tells mid-day. He sends R6,000 home every month.
"Thanks to Praful Upadhyay we have all what is needed to prepare our meals; his 'ration' will last for a week," he adds. mid-day reported on Sunday about how Upadhyay, an amateur cricketer and community tournament organiser, distributed 65 bags consisting of tea powder, wheat flour, dal, rice, oil, onions, potatoes, sugar and salt to groundsmen at Cross, Azad, Oval Maidans, Shivaji Park and Dadkar Maidan in Matunga.