This season’s debut teams — Bengal Tigers and Kerala Strikers — emerged winners
Kavya Christopher
It seemed like all of Kochi had landed up at the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium to watch celebrities play for the Celebrity Cricket League (CCL). More than the stars on the field, people in the stadium cheered louder each time a debutant did well. So much so that both the matches saw a surprise and much welcome win by this season’s debutant teams — the Bengal Tigers and the Kerala Strikers.
The crowd was a bit thin for the first match between Chennai Rhinos and Bengal Tigers, but swelled as the match went into a nail-biting finish with the latter emerging winners. Their favourite was undoubtedly Arya of the Chennai team. In the stands was Barkha Sengupta, wife of Bengal team member Indraneil and their baby daughter. Even the captain of Bengal Tigers, Jeet, could not believe that the team had actually won against last season’s champions!
By the time the second match between Mumbai Heroes and Kerala Strikers began, energy levels inside the stadium were sky high. “It reminds us of the time when India played against Pakistan at Eden Gardens,” it was overheard.
Team ambassadors and heroines Genelia D’Souza, Priyamani, Lakshmi Rai, Bhavana, Sanjjanaa and Sonia Aggarwal added to the glam factor when they cheered on the teams from the dugout. It was a treat to see actors like Sohail Khan, Suniel Shetty, Riteish Deshmukh, Bobby Deol, Mammootty, Prithviraj and Sharath Kumar and cricketer Sreesanth all in one place.
Kerala Strikers’ captain, Mohanlal, won the loudest cheers for every move on the field. But the crowd went berserk when yet another stalwart of the industry, Mammootty, walked in to the arena to cheer his home team.
The crowd went a little out of control when they saw their favourite stars leaving the stadium after the matches. Some fans fell right out of the stalls and had to be rushed to the hospital. The after-party, held at Dream hotel, saw the stars coming out to shake a leg on the dance floor. Riteish and Genelia set the dance floor on fire, even as Sohail Khan took over as the official DJ at the ballroom for the night.
The crowd was a bit thin for the first match between Chennai Rhinos and Bengal Tigers, but swelled as the match went into a nail-biting finish with the latter emerging winners. Their favourite was undoubtedly Arya of the Chennai team. In the stands was Barkha Sengupta, wife of Bengal team member Indraneil and their baby daughter. Even the captain of Bengal Tigers, Jeet, could not believe that the team had actually won against last season’s champions!
By the time the second match between Mumbai Heroes and Kerala Strikers began, energy levels inside the stadium were sky high. “It reminds us of the time when India played against Pakistan at Eden Gardens,” it was overheard.
Team ambassadors and heroines Genelia D’Souza, Priyamani, Lakshmi Rai, Bhavana, Sanjjanaa and Sonia Aggarwal added to the glam factor when they cheered on the teams from the dugout. It was a treat to see actors like Sohail Khan, Suniel Shetty, Riteish Deshmukh, Bobby Deol, Mammootty, Prithviraj and Sharath Kumar and cricketer Sreesanth all in one place.
Kerala Strikers’ captain, Mohanlal, won the loudest cheers for every move on the field. But the crowd went berserk when yet another stalwart of the industry, Mammootty, walked in to the arena to cheer his home team.
The crowd went a little out of control when they saw their favourite stars leaving the stadium after the matches. Some fans fell right out of the stalls and had to be rushed to the hospital. The after-party, held at Dream hotel, saw the stars coming out to shake a leg on the dance floor. Riteish and Genelia set the dance floor on fire, even as Sohail Khan took over as the official DJ at the ballroom for the night.
