Not tied down by a tie...

The last-minute shift of venue of the Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) matches from Chennai to Bangalore didn’t hamper the turnout in any way. While the first match was between Bhojpuri Dabanggs and Bengal Tigers, the second one had Karnataka Bulldozers and Chennai Rhinos putting up a tough fight.

 

Although the stadium remained empty and docile during the match between Bhojpuri Dabanggs and Bengal Tigers, it was packed during the second match with frenzied fans coming in to witness the battle between Karnataka Bulldozers and Chennai Rhinos. And the stars did not fail their fans as they fought evenly with the match ending in a tie after many pulsating and nerve-wracking moments.

The matches had all the paraphernalia of a potboiler. Even though not many cricket-related accessories were doled out to the spectators, the fans were not the ones to be let down. They made their own banners, accessories, rather weird but colourful headgears and carried pictures of their favourite actors — all in a bid to egg their icons on.

The match between Bhojpuri Dabanggs and Bengal Tigers saw the latter struggle to cope with the high scores set by the former. And at the end of the game, there was disappointment writ large on the faces of the players of Bengal Tigers while the celebrations in the team of Bhojpuri Dabanggs was carried into the changing rooms as well where the boys were seen wallowing in their victorious win. 

An elated Manoj Tiwari, the captain of Bhojpuri Dabanggs, said, “We just went out there and had fun. In fact, the boys took it very lightly. It is this spirit that helped them wrest victory.” He too broke into a jig with the boys.  Boney Kapoor, the owner of Bengal Tigers who suddenly appeared towards the end of the match, headed out to the ground to watch the match between Karnataka Bulldozers and Chennai Rhinos. “The boys work very hard and more than winning, it is the fun and bonding they have on and off the pitch,” noted Boney. 

He added, “I really love the Bangalore crowd because it cheers for all the teams, irrespective of who it supports. The energy here is one of a kind.” The stadium came alive as soon as the boys from Karnataka Bulldozers and Chennai Rhinos began walking into the ground. The Karnataka Bulldozers had almost all of Sandalwood’s young heroines in full attendance, including Amulya, Mythriya, Meghana Gaonkar, Ragini, Priyamani, Rajashri, who made sure they screamed their hearts out to cheer their heroes. A bandana tied around his head, captain Sudeep was seen giving the boys a last-minute pep talk before they headed out. 

Actor and minister for housing Ambarish, who arrived well in time to watch the Karnataka Bulldozers bat, said, “They are my boys. Why would I miss a game by them? I may be growing old but my spirit is still young.” The Chennai Rhinos’ dugout was just as lively with brand ambassador actress Trisha socialising and catching up with friends from the other language industries. 

She even obliged her fans with pictures. Actresses Varalaxmi Sarathkumar and Vijayalakshmi were seen lending their support to team even as they emptied a couple of energy drinks to keep their spirits high.