CHENNAI: “DOES that mean you are coming back next year as well,” asked broadcaster Danny Morrison, indicating to the loud cheers from the stands of the MA Chidambaram stadium, as he spoke to Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni. The 43-year-old, in his typically witty manner, replied, “I don’t know. I am coming for the next game.”
It led to a comical moment at the toss, but as the camera panned, the one thing that was hard to miss was the number of empty seats in the stands. Now, it was a Wednesday, and on most weekday IPL games the crowd takes time to come in and fill the stands. On such occasions, how the stands look about an hour into the game gives a fair idea on what the attendance is going to be. And Chepauk, which can hold about 35,000 fans, has consistently seen an official attendance close to 30,000 or more. The SRH game saw about 32,770 fans fill the ground while on Wednesday, as many as 32,063 fans (according to official figures) had shown up till about 8.30PM.
That being said, in the lead up to the game between CSK and Punjab Kings, one thing seemed clear. The ticket demand for the Chennai home games was not what it was a couple of weeks ago or how it was at the start of the season. In fact, till late on Tuesday night, the side's official ticket partner showed that the tickets were still available. Even hours before the game, several WhatsApp groups were flooded with messages of tickets being available at face value.
This lack of demand is a very un-Chennai like. In the past, the general frustration among fans has usually been about how hard it is to get a ticket. More often than not, they used to be sold out in the first hour upon release. It hasn’t been the case this year and that has largely come down to the poor season the five-time champions have had so far. With just two wins in nine games, CSK are all but out of the tournament and that has reflected in the demand.
However, it has meant that fans who usually vent about how difficult it is to book a ticket online have gotten a chance to get a glimpse of Dhoni as well as their team in action. In fact, several fans outside the ground expressed their excitement on how CSK doing badly has made it easier for them to book tickets online.
Saravanan Elangovan, a fan who attended the Sunrisers Hyderabad game on April 25, echoed the sentiment. “The game against Kolkata Knight Riders was the last time tickets were sold within hours. From the SRH game, there is a big difference. I was able to see empty seats in KMK Stand even after the day bookings opened,” he told this daily. “For this game (against PBKS), they even opened the G stand and until Tuesday night, the lower stand (`4000) tickets were there for the taking. One of my friends called and said he is going to try and book for the Rajasthan game (May 12) since it has become easier to book online,” he added.
While the demand seems to have gone down, the fact that 32, 000 fans showed up despite the disappointing season remains a motivation for the team and the players. After the loss against SRH, CSK head coach alluded to the hollow feeling within the group for letting down the fans. “I am really proud of the support we get and I am disappointed and heavy that this season has gone the way it has gone. So what they will get is an absolutely strong commitment that we will do everything in the next few matches to play well. We still want to win games, but we also will do everything we can to improve the squad, our philosophy and there will be no stone unturned in terms of our review and what we have done and what we need to do and that is a commitment that we will be back to make,” Fleming had said.