Idukki: Unexpected bouncers, swinging deliveries and towering sixes are common sights on a cricket ground, often turning players into stars overnight. But at a cricket ground in Idukki’s high range, it was a wild elephant that stole the show with a surprise appearance.

The incident occurred at the Muthampady cricket ground on the forest fringes at Valakode in Upputhara. Around 3.30 pm on Tuesday, as a hartal was observed across the state, youngsters were engaged in a cricket match when a wild elephant slowly walked into the ground through a nearby grassland.

Swinging its head, the elephant calmly approached the area, watched the players for some time and stood there without showing aggression. It later scooped up soil with its trunk and dusted itself before spending a few more minutes near the ground.

On spotting the elephant, the players stopped the game, put away their bats and moved to the other side of a nearby stream for safety. Team members Joji Joseph and Sharan captured videos and photographs of the elephant on their mobile phones.

After spending some time near the ground, the elephant walked to a nearby water channel, drank water and eventually returned to the forest. The players then resumed their match.

Speaking to Onmanorama, team member Joji Joseph said wild elephants frequently descend to the area to drink water, but this was the first time one had come so close to the ground, that too during a cricket match. He added that elephants were often seen in nearby regions as well, but they usually do not attack people or destroy crops.

“The elephant’s unexpected visit created both surprise and excitement among everyone present,” he said.

In the high range areas of Idukki, level playing grounds are scarce, and youngsters often depend on open grasslands in the Idukki dam reservoir region for sports such as cricket and football. Several such grounds exist in the dam’s catchment areas and serve as major recreational spaces for sports lovers in the region.

These grounds are submerged every year when the Idukki dam fills up during the monsoon, but become active again once the water recedes. Muthampady ground is one such venue widely used by local youth.