Celebrities ‘cold shoulder’ Chargers

Published: May 11, 2012

They defied the heat and humidity in the afternoon to troop into the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium for the Indian Premier League match in big numbers. It was apparent that most of them were big fans of the explosive Delhi Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag and David Warner.

Well, to the disappointment of many in the stands, Cameron White produced a stunning catch to send back Sehwag of the second ball of the innings off slow bowler Shikar Dhawan.

Not the kind of start the crowd was looking for after being witness to the fire-works from the in-form Chargers top-order batsmen Shikhar Dhawan and White, who no doubt delighted the noisy crowd with some lusty hitting.

Well, it is a tribute to the typical spirit of the Hyderabadis who were there and like all true cricket lovers hoping for the big guns to boom even as the weather cooled down to make it a pleasant windy evening.

The pre-match focus was on Sehwag who hit a century in the last IPL game he played here.

But, as the Delhi innings progressed, it was Warner who dazzled under the lights with some breathtaking strokes, more than compensating for the early loss of his captain with an amazing fifth century in T-20 and second in the IPL. A visual treat under the perfect ambience in which the fans soaked to the hilt.

Notwithstanding the frequent exasperated looks of Kumar Sangakkara! Cheering every time he opened up to play his trade-mark strokes on either side of the wicket and often clearing the field.

Interestingly, there were no real big celebrities cheering the local outfit this evening.

Incentive for fans

Well, they say, cricket is all about timing! And, Chargers sponsor, Fly Emirates, came with an incentive for the fans. Providing Indian cricket fans the chance to be re-united with a friend or a relative living abroad at the IPL franchisee’s final match on May 20 against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the city.

The proud winner will join captain Kumar Sangakkara for the coin toss which will be seen by millions of TV viewers worldwide.

The prize will go the ‘Ultimate Deccan Chargers Fan’ who will be found through a contest on its Facebook page.

Article source: http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/article3407410.ece