Cricket match unites Indians, Aussies

The pitch was a footpath with a wicket that became a backyard batsman's paradise.
But for the half-dozen Indian students who hit their share of boundaries on
Australia Day, it was still a great game of cricket.
The Indian students were the stars in a game against Victoria Police officers in a
continuing campaign to promote harmony.
The match, held under sunny skies beside Melbourne's Sidney Myer Music Bowl, came
amid controversy over racist attacks and the unsolved slaying of 21-year-old Nitin
Garg which strained relations and had police members compared to the Ku Klux Klan by
an Indian newspaper.
It was the second "harmony" game between Indian students and police but the first to
be held on Australia Day - which was fittingly also Indian Republic Day for many of
the participants.
"It's a small step," said Simon Overland, the state's top cop who hasn't played
cricket in 30 years, after he sent down a gentle lob that was smashed over the fence
for six.
Mr Overland said some attacks in the state were racist but there appeared to be no
pattern to them.
"In some ways, the racism just risks missing the point, which is that it's about the
violence and the violence is clearly not OK regardless of who's involved," he said.
For Vishal Polineni, who moved to Australia from India a year ago to study
engineering, the attacks have been blown out of proportion and Melbourne is a safe
city.
After hitting his share of boundaries as a potential Man of the Match, he said he
hadn't experienced any violence in the city. While his friends in India tell him
they've heard of problems, he tells them to ignore it.
"I've told them to come here, it's a good country," he said.
"It's not so bad as the media is making it out to be."