JOIN USIn their last-ditch effort to catch the high-voltage summit clash between local outfit Royal Challengers and Sunrisers Hyderabad live, hundreds of fans were seen wandering around Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday morning looking for a ticket in black.
A lucky few managed to lay their hands on that elusive ticket but not before shelling out a fortune to black marketeers. A large number of cricket fans thronged the venue hours before the scheduled start of the IPL 2016 title clash to make sure that they are not stuck in the traffic jams in and around the stadium.
“We were waiting for this great day. We have also decided to celebrate in a big way if our favourite RCB team emerges victorious,” said Srikanth and his friends who came from Malleswaram. Enthusiastic fans, cutting across age groups, were seen rushing hurriedly at the venue to get into the stadium in time for the final clash. With the city bagging the right to host the final and RCB marching into the title clash, the vendors had every reason to smile. The Sunday’s game brought them brisk business.The diehard fans of RCB, who walk that extra mile to flaunt the team colours, were seen buying team jerseys, colourful wigs, flags and bands from the vendors.
Fans of Sunrisers were seen disappointed as they could not find a single vendor selling the t-shirts, caps, flags of Hyderabad-based outfit. “There are only a few buyers for the Sunrisers team jersey. Sensing this, we did not get much of the team jersey of Sunrises as it would not fetch us profit” said Chandran, a vendor.
The vendors faced stiff competition as many turned up at the venue forcing them to sell the merchandise at discounts. Elaborate security arrangements were made around the stadium for the final match. Traffic cops were pressed into service to ensure the smooth vehicular movement. The traffic cops were seen trying hard to clear the traffic and asking the vehicle owners to park their vehicle far away from the venue.