Cricket last brought Trafalgar Square to a standstill in September 2005, and on a cold day in December it nearly happened again. The circumstances, however, were entirely different

Cricinfo staff06-Dec-2008
The “freeze mob” in Trafalgar Square, on a suitably chilly winter’s afternoon © Cricinfo Ltd
Cricket last brought Trafalgar Square to a standstill in September 2005, and on a cold day in December it nearly happened again. The circumstances, however, were entirely different.The Everest Test is the ambitious fund-raiser involving 30 people and players from Britain. Their aim? To stage the highest Twenty20 match – indeed, the highest field-sport match – on the slopes of Mount Everest. The expedition itself consists of 51 people which includes two squads of 15, two umpires and a support crew of cameramen, photographers, medics, lawyers and environmental experts.To raise their profile and attract sponsors the team descended on London this afternoon, where they held several “freeze mobs” – an offshoot of another cult, “flash mobbing”. The group re-enacted a team’s appeal, holding the pose and freezing for three minutes, leaving spectators bemused and curious. And a little impressed, too.”We wanted to raise the profile of what we’re doing and I think we’ve done that,” the organiser, Richard Kirtley, told Cricinfo. “The look on some people’s faces was absolutely priceless.”The teams are named after the first two men to conquer Everest, Hillary and Tenzing, and Hillary captain Glen Lowis also took part in the mob.”This whole thing keeps getting better and better. It’s been rolling for about eight months now and everyone is pulling together in the way we hoped they would,” Lowis said. “There’s no doubt this is a huge undertaking and we want to make it as big as it can possibly be. Days like this are great fun, but there is an enormous amount of hard work going on behind the scenes as well.”After the freezes the whole squad headed to Lord’s to have an official meeting regarding progress and official partners. As for publicity stunts, co-organiser Gareth Wesley hinted that they are unlikely to stop here and will carry on after they return to raise as much money for the Himalayan Trust as possible.A potential rematch to be played at The Oval either during a lunch break of the final Ashes Test next year, or the ODI, is one such event on the cards.