India might be a visiting team at the historic Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica but for cricket aficionados here, India are more than just visitors. Jamaica and India share a deep bond and when Virat Kohli’s men play the second Test of the four-match Test series against the West Indies here on Saturday, they are sure to get the respect of the locals. Renowned as the ground that saw the first ever Test triple hundred scored by England's Andy Sandham (325) against the West Indies in 1930, Sabina Park came into prominence when Sir Garry Sobers converted his maiden Test hundred into a sensational unbeaten 365, a Test record that remained insurmountable for 36 years. Replete with tales of Jamaican fast bowlers Michael Holding and Courtney Walsh, the picturesque ground overlooking the Blue Mountains in the north and Kingston Harbour in the south, has now made a seamless transition to the jazzy shortest format of the game. The Jamaica Tallawahs, the home team receives tremendous support and the Caribbean Premier League games here are nothing short of a carnival with Chris Gayle leading the yellow and green army. Day-night cricket has changed the face of the sport in this part and revived the interest of the people. It might come as a surprise, but India had a role to play in introducing day-night cricket at the venue. The Government of India signed a MOU with The Government of Jamaica in April 2014 to provide financial grant of US$2.1 million to set up floodlights at the venue. The financial assistance was a reflection of mutual trust and understanding between the two nations and also as recognition of Jamaica as an outstanding aficionados of the sport of cricket.

“The flood lights were in fact financed to a significant grant from the Indian government. We're thankful to them and have a monument outside the ground expressing our gratitude for their kind gift. They have been helpful and supportive. The day-night matches here have brought new vibrancy to the sport,” said Anthony Walters, CEO, Sabina Park in a chat with BCCI.TV.

He hoped that the second Test would bring more fans to the ground. “Well, historically a close relation between cricket and West Indies comes from a shared common goal as members of Commonwealth Games. The Indian team will bring a lot of interest. There is a large population of Indians and we expect a good, competitive match.”