IPL 2018: Overwhelming emotions transpire into a victory for the Chennai Super Kings
1066 days, the crowd at Chennai had to wait for 1066 days before witnessing their home side play in front of them at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The 25,000 hours proved to be a long wait for the Super Kings fans who are the best known for their emotional connect with their side. Chennai Super Kings' practice sessions before the IPL gained a lot of coverage after the fans turned up in numbers to support their home-based franchise, more than 5000 people came for the practice sessions every day and around 20,000 people gathered to watch the practice match.
It was evident that the home games will attract a lot more people and the fans would back the Super Kings after a gap of two long years. Inevitably, the men in yellow were cheered at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai albeit the sea of blue overshadowed the yellow brigade but the chants of "Chennai! Chennai!" rolled in the eardrums for days to follow. The CSK fans were worried before their first home game as the Cauvery issue rose to prominence following a few remarks which could take away the home games from Chennai, shifting to Kerala was the alternate option.
Whilst there were threats of protests inside the stadium 4000 security personnel were employed and the yellow brigade started distributing the yellow t-shirts and jerseys to convert the stadium into a lost fortress, a fortress which was etched in the hearts of Super Kings fans long ago, a fortress that they had somehow lost. With all their unnoticed efforts, the fans revived their fortress as the Super Kings defeated the two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders in an intense game. The chants will reverberate in the ears of each CSK fan and supporter.
The overwhelming emotions were common for the fans but for the players, they were unprecedented. During the team huddle, the ecstasy was clearly visible on the face of the Chennai skipper MS Dhoni who bestowed words of wisdom during the huddle, but the words unarguably meant more than cricket as the emotion had taken over the cricketing minds at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The emphasis on emotion explains the enormous eccentric yet conventional approach of the fans. The Chennai fans will cover each and every stadium in yellow when the Kings take on other oppositions away from home.
Despite his lost touch in T20 cricket Dhoni remains to be the fulcrum of the side with other players learning around him. Dhoni's finishing abilities have taken a toll with his growing age but guiding other players to take up the role successfully is a bigger achievement than the aforementioned. The Chennai Captain has always provided the team with credit after winning a game but even Kedar Jadhav owes his six over fine leg to MS Dhoni who signaled the shot from the dressing room. Beyond any doubt, the Super Kings fans would want MSD to bring out his exploits in this year's IPL.
Being welcomed by a faithful sea of yellow would mean a lot to the players and this emotional homecoming would inspire them to perform even better in the upcoming stages of the tournament. After registering a wonderful victory at their home ground Chennai's caravan would move further to the North when they face the Kings XI Punjab at the PCA Stadium in Mohali. This will be another encounter filled with emotions as the former CSK player Ravichandran Ashwin will take on the MS Dhoni in the battle of Captains. The Super Kings fans would be behind their team despite the venue and with these factors, a performance from the yellow brigade is guaranteed.