Wow, it was Jayasuriya !!!!

Exclaims photographer whose nose was fractured by the Sri Lankan’s smashing boundary last night

Sanath Jayasuriya ensured that photographer Andrea Fernandes’s first sports assignment would be a memorable one.

The swashbuckling Sri Lankan sent one of his trademark slashes crashing into the fence at Wankhede stadium, during the Mumbai Indians vs Bangalore Royal Challengers IPL match last night, where it landed on the nose of the 24-year-old Andrea, who was standing just behind the advertising hoardings.

But Andrea, who is admitted at Harkishandas Hospital, Charni Road, with a fractured nose, is still counting her blessings. “Wow... it was Jayasuriya! I wasn’t aware who the batsman was but I am thankful it wasn’t a six. If a four can break my nose, imagine what a six would have done,” she said. Dr Ashok Shah said she would be operated upon today.

Fernandes has been a photographer for more than three years but yesterday’s IPL match was her first sports assignment.

“From this experience I have learnt that safety is needed no matter where you are,” she said. She added that this would not stop her from covering more matches in the future.