Dilshan Pyrotechnics begin even before the match starts

Sri Lanka cricketers Tilakratne Dilshan and Sanath Jayasurya with an unidentified lady in black at Shisha, a Kolkata nightclub

Tilakratne Dilshan was expected to be his usual aggressive self at the historical Eden Gardens later today in the 4th One Day match between India and Sri Lanka. But what we were not expecting was the aggression to commence more than 12 hours before schedule at a night club in Kolkata.

Two Sri Lankan cricketers, Dilshan and Sanath Jayasurya were spotted at a night club on Camac Street in Kolkata on the eve of the 4th one day. Bishwarup Dutta, a photographer attached to The Telegraph, a leading Kolkata newspaper, got to know that two Lankan cricketers were at Shisha, a night club on Camac Street, less than a mile away from his office and decided to check things out – what journalist would resist that temptation! When Dutta and a colleague of his reached Shisha, they saw the two Lankan cricketers sitting at the pub alongwith an unidentified young woman dressed in black. As the lights were dim and it was difficult to see anything clearly, Dutta pointed his camera at the Lankan cricketers and their lady friend and as the flash brightened up the dark atmoshpere of the pub, Dilshan lost his cool simultaneously.

While Jayasurya was gentlemanly and merely chided off Dutta for not bothering about asking for permission before clicking their pictures, Dilshan was not as cool. The Lankan opener was quite troubled by the pictures that Dutta had clicked and insisted that the pictures be deleted immediately. That’s what irked Dutta and he decided to hang on get a few more pictures instead.

As the action shifted to the dance floor, and Dutta was busy planning to click a few pictures of Dilshan and his lady friend on the dance floor at Shisha, Dilshan approached Dutta again and was only more furious this time: “Didn’t I tell you to leave us alone? Show me the camera.” Sensing that things might only get worse, Dutta decided to leave the nightclub but Dilshan chased him all the way down the elevator and then onto the streets. Dutta said that at one moment Dilshan in his keenness to get hold of the photographer and the photographs was crossing the street even as cars were zipping past him dangerously and the photographer was almost worried that the Lanka cricketer might be run down.

However, Dilshan crossed the street safely and caught hold of Dutta by his collar demanding that he hand over his camera to him. Dilshan never quite assaulted the photographer but was at his aggressive worst and snatched the camera from Dutta. He was being helped by a few guys at the bar whom he must have recently befriended.