When love for cricket prevailed over aching legs

The Central Business District, especially around Mahatma Gandhi (MG) Road, saw heavy traffic on Sunday evening.

People from across the City were flocking to the M Chinnaswamy Stadium to watch the IPL T20 match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad.

The long walk and the struggle to find a suitable parking space did not dampen the spirits of the scores who wanted to enjoy the match.

People had started to gather since afternoon to find a suitable parking space.

Many walked more than two km to reach the stadium.

Mohith and his friends parked their car on Wood Street and walked to the stadium (nearly 4 km) at 3 pm. Many also parked their cars at UB City and walked all the way with their children.

“We did not find parking place anywhere around MG Road and Cubbon Road. So we were forced to park in UB City. It is expensive, but the vehicle will be safe there. Since autorickshaws were overcharging, we decided to walk,” said a fan. Many people even parked their vehicles at Shivajinagar bus stand and walked.

Traffic jams were reported in many parts of CBD like Anil Kumble Circle, Kasturba Road, Cubbon Road and MG Road.

Traffic police booked cases against offenders and towed the vehicles away. Around 20 two-wheelers and 10 cars were towed away from Cubbon Road, from near Koshy’s, Queen’s Road, Residency Road and MG Road.

On the whole, everything went on smoothly, except for minor glitches, said a traffic policeman.

According to the traffic police, the crowd this time was much larger compared with previous years. It is expected to be higher for the forthcoming match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab on May 9.