This match will be India’s 250th on home ground.

“Kapil Dev will ring the bell,” the former India captain told reporters here.

The bell, resembling the one at Lord’s, is likely to be installed on Tuesday. Made of brass with a top coating of silver, it has been brought from Chandigarh.

A gold coin will be used for toss, and Ganguly informed the coin will be used for every match played at the Eden henceforth.

“The same coin will be used for the toss every time a match is played at the Eden Gardens,” he said.

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Anurag Thakur is expected to arrive in the city on October 1, the second day of the Test match. Thakur will hand over the specially-minted silver coins on Day 3 of the five-day affair.

The coin will be embossed with “250” and will be presented to former Bengal captains as well.

Ganguly also said the wicket at the Eden will turn as the match progresses.

“It will be a good wicket. There has been a lot of rain so the ball will turn slowly as the match wears on,” he said.

Tendulkar’s decision to put the opposition in to bat backfired as game’s heavyweights Kumar Sangakkara (70 off 30), Jacques Kallis (45 off 23) and Ricky Ponting (41 off 16) tore apart the equally celebrated Warriors’ bowling attack to smash 262 for five in 20 overs.

The likes of Tendulkar (33 off 20), Virender Sehwag (16 off 8), Shaun Pollock (55 off 22) Brian Lara (19 off 21) and Sourav Ganguly (12 off 12) enthralled a sizable crowd with their brief knocks at Minute Maid Park.

The ‘legends’ now travel to Los Angeles for the final game of the series on Saturday. The opening match, won by Warne’s men convincingly, was played in New York on November 7.

Though the match’s outcome was not that significant considering the games are a mere exhibition, the famed former cricketers from both teams displayed fierce competitive spirit.

The competitive zeal was evident when the dream opening pair of Tendulkar and Sehwag walked into the middle. What made the contest more mouthwatering was Wasim Akram opening the bowling for Warriors and swinging the ball in from the word go.

It was now Tendulkar’s turn to use the long handle. The master blaster hammered three fours and couple of sixes before his old foe Saqlain Mushtaq found his stumps with a fast off spinner.

Ganguly, playing his first game of the series, was expectedly rusty to start with but managed a four and a big hit in his run a ball innings.

Warne too appreciated the crowd response.

“The way we have been treated has been fantastic.

Sangakkara, who was the Man of the Match for his blazing knock, said: “It was a lot of fun, thank you Houston for the hospitality. Lot of credit to Sachin and Warney, they are pioneers on the field and they are breaking new round off the field. All outstanding players, legends of the game, the crowd participation has been unbelievable. Players have given their all on the field. “Participation of kids is vital for the growth of the game but for us, it has been humbling. Hopefully the game catches on in the US,” Sangakkara said. PTI

Warne’s Warriors: 262 for 5 (MP Vaughan 30, ML Hayden 32, JH Kallis 45, KC Sangakkara 70, RT Ponting 41, A Symonds 19 n.o., JN Rhodes 18 n.o., L Klusener 2 for 45)

Sachin’s Blasters: 205 for 8 (SR Tendulkar 33, L Klusener 21, SM Pollock 55, GP Swann 22 n.o., A Symonds 4 for 70)

More than two years after last appearing for his country, Sehwag accepted that there would be no emotional comeback as he became the latest member of India’s World Cup-winning team to call it a day.

“God has been kind and I have done what I wanted to do,” he said in a statement on his 37th birthday after again being overlooked by the selectors for the ongoing series against South Africa.

“Cricket has been my life and continues to be so. Playing for India was a memorable journey and I tried to make it more memorable for my team mates and the Indian cricket fans.” The right-handed batsman also confirmed he was retiring from the Indian Premier League, an annual Twenty20 tournament that takes place in April and May.

Reports however said Sehwag would continue to play first-class cricket for his state side Haryana in the domestic Ranji Tropy competition.

After making his debut against South Africa in 2001, Sehwag became one of the most feared batsmen in world cricket, forming part of a formidable line-up that also included Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly.

Sehwag is widely credited with transforming the role of opening batsman in Test cricket with a hard-hitting style that brought him a top score in Test matches of 319, against South Africa in Chennai in 2008.