04 April,2019 07:22 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh Mayure
A group of die-hard MS u00c3u0084u00c2u0090honi fans at the Wankhede yesterday. Pic/Subodh Mayure
The Indian Premier League is hailed for its entertainment value and broad fan base which includes many, who may not even be regular followers of cricket. However, for the die-hard cricket fan, it remains an opportunity to watch their hero in the flesh. And many will go to any lengths or pay any price for this.
One such group of 12 friends paid through their nose to buy match tickets of the Mumbai Indians v Chennai Super Kings clash at Wankhede yesterday to see their hero, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, in action.
"We are all students, some from KC College [Churchgate] and some from Mithibai College [Vile Parle]. We play tennis-ball cricket together. We are totally crazy about Mahi [Dhoni's nickname] and decided to watch this match together but we struggled to get tickets. Last week, someone told us that a few tickets are available in black, but the seller is demanding Rs 4500 for a Rs 880 ticket. Then, a few days later, the tickets became available for Rs 3300 and we bought them," Sandhurst Road-resident Aayush Bhandari, 19, who was sitting with his friends in the Vijay Merchant Pavilion, told mid-day yesterday.
Also Read: Twitter hails MS Dhoni after match-winning knock and cool captaincy versus Rajasthan Royals
So what do they like about Dhoni?
"He is totally different from other cricketers in terms of leading a team and shouldering responsibility as a batsman or wicketkeeper. Most of us are watching an IPL match in the stadium for the first time and we paid this exorbitant price for these tickets only for Dhoni. We believe that no price is too high for him. We have even named our group Dhoni 12," said another member of the group, Akshay Raja.
Also Read: IPL 2019: Mahendra Singh Dhoni is unreal as captain, says Imran Tahir
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