The Cricket Association of Bengal brass had mistaken a World Cup match to be an IPL encounter. That too, a virtual quarter-final contest.
The result: Sunday's laser show came under severe criticism from former India captains Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri.
Both Gavaskar and Shastri questioned the need for a laser show during the drinks break of the T20 World Cup Super 8 clash between India and the West Indies at Eden Gardens.
India were 53/2 in pursuit of 196 when the Powerplay ended, and the scheduled break was taken. During the three-minute interval, the stadium lights were dimmed for the laser show, briefly plunging the ground into darkness.
Obviously, the CAB had no idea that the sudden change in light conditions could disrupt the batters' focus and vision.
“The laser show during the two-and-a-half or three minutes of the drinks break… it’s not easy on the batters, or anybody for that matter. To get your eyes used to the light, to get the bright lights again, you have darkness around you,” Gavaskar said during commentary.
“You have a laser thing going on... This is the World Cup... And for two-and-a-half minutes, do you need this kind of entertainment?
"In the IPL, it’s fine in the middle of the tournament. Not in the knockouts... But at the moment here, in the World Cup, do we need these laser shows in the middle of the drinks break, at the drinks interval?”
Shastri was equally livid. “And from the players' point of view, to switch back on, is never easy. It's serious stuff,” Shastri said.
Would anyone from the CAB have taken responsibility and apologised for such gimmicks had it resulted in the dismissal of any of the Indian batters at a critical phase of the innings?