IPL fever bowls capital

- Hey, look at Gayle, Gambhir

 VIJAY DEO JHA 

Ranchi

                                                                                   courtesy The Telegraph

“Hotele ki hochchhe? Eto Bheed keno?,” Bharat Bose (70) a former bank employee, puffing bidi with tea, curiously asked the tea stall owner about hundreds peeping inside Hotel Radisson Blu this afternoon.

“Dada, IPL er bheed. Era sobai player dekhte eseche? Apni dekhte jaben na ki? (This crowd is for IPL. They have come to see players? Will you not got to watch the game?).    

Bose was quite unmoved by frenzy of cricket and the fight of purple of SRK’s ‘Kolkata Knight Rider’ with red of Vijay Mallya Royal Challenger this evening at International Cricket Stadium, Dhurwa. “Ei crickete amar interest nai, (I have no interest in this kind of cricket),” Bose seemed to have problem with 20-20 format of cricket that he said a ‘money making game’ that has taken toll over class cricket and test matches.

But, Bose remained an isolated voice as others joined the discourse occupying wooden bench of the tea stall much in the fashion of Hindu pantheons arranged in a row. “Only you are getting crazy, rest is rejoicing it. Have you seen how Chris Gayle sending every ball out of boundary? Just see people waiting to see the players. Many of us are going to watch,” a young man interrupted.  

Crowd erupted all of a sudden in front of the hotel, with deafening decibels of sloganeering much in the fashion of a the rally of the Mamta Banarjee — Gambhir, Gambhir, Gayle tu khel — as soon as players left for the stadium in the afternoon. The local police and the IMG Security Limited soon pushed them back to make way for the players.

“It is happening daily sir. Hundreds come everyday requesting us to allow them to go inside to see the players. They even offer us good bucks if we could manage their autograph what a craze for cricket sir. Very tight security sir…it will remain till Thursday till the players will leave the hotel,” a hotel security guard said. Ranchi has reasons to regale as the city will host another IPL match on Wednesday between Pune Warrior and Kolkata Knight Rider.

“Today, Gambhir will not smile on the ground he has said to the media. He will deliver his best to make the game a korbo, lorbo story. But Gel is going to bring hell upon his opponent,” Prabhu Kumar a student said. Kumar lamented he could have seen them playing on the ground if his pocket would have allowed to purchase ticket. Gambhir is leading the Kolkata Knight Rider against Virat Kohali of the Royal Challenger.

The team of Gambhir, he said, has lost eight matches out of 13 played so far and the victory tonight is quite required.

Elaborate arrangements were made by the hotel authorities for the players of three teams staying here. “Good arrangements have been made. Food is prepared according to their choice to serve them during Super Breakfast. Items prepared at the Kabab Factory in the hotel are loved by all the players,” a manager of the hotel said.

The day being Sunday, the city road bore a deserted look, shops remained closed and the Firayalal Chowk that defies silence on any day obliged the call of the day. “But you see the rush of people and traffic on the road leading to the ground. People are very passionate about cricket. We have deployed good number of traffic cops and dedicated QRT and control units,” Ranchi SP Manoj Ratan said.   

Auto rickshaws drivers found it a day fit for brisk business. “Players are earning in crore out of game, at least, we should earn a thousand. I have already hired my auto to ferry some crazy game lovers of my mohallah near to the stadium. If they can spend thousands on ticket they should give us something too,” Munilal an auto driver said.

The Dhurwa stadium witnessed a torrent of red and purple flags and the flash of cameras as the game started.

But Bose an ardent cricket lover of his time will keep you arguing such IPL teams represents private and profitable club headquartered at Mumbai and Bangalore which has nothing to do with national pride and sentiment.