With the euphoria of India’s fairy tale World Cup win hanging heavy in the air, another cricketing carnival gets underway Friday night- the fourth edition of Indian Premier League (IPL).
The post-Lalit Modi IPL will kick off at the decked-up MA Chidambaram Stadium with a clash of not just two teams but of of the two key members of the World Cup winning side- Dhoni and Gambir- as they face off in the inaugural match of the cash-rich domestic Twenty20 cricket league.
When champions Chennai Super Kings meet Shah Rukh Khan?s Kolkata Knight Riders here Friday, all eyes will be on M S Dhoni and Gautam Gambhir, the two heroes of the scintillating World Cup final match.
While Dhoni leads Chennai Super Kings, Gambhir captains a reorganized KKR sans Sourav Ganguly.
Reports said Bollywood king and KKR owner Shah Rukh Khan will make an appearance at the opening ceremony and charge up the spectators with his hip-swinging dance numbers.
.The captains of the two opening teams exuded confidence.
?The World Cup is history. I am not concerned what MS would be doing, but am more focused on my team and what we want to do,? Gambhir who moved to Kolkata after three seasons with the Delhi Daredevils, was quoted by the site of one of the teams.
According to Chennai Super Kings, their captain Dhoni exuded quiet confidence that is so typical of him.
Dhoni said the Super Kings came out best in the auctions, retaining their core players who played critical roles in the team reaching the final in 2008, semi-finals in 2009 and winning the trophy last year.
Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming concurred with Dhoni when he said: ?There has been a lot of talk and discussion on how the teams are on paper. We are happy to get a majority of the players who were with us in the past three seasons.
?And so, we can possibly get into the system straightaway as a majority of the players know what to expect. It is better than starting from scratch,? he said.
Gambhir has no such luxury, but said the KKR team has had several meetings in a bid to get to know each other.
Shah Rukh Khan said KKR is returning ?stronger, tougher and even more determined to take the IPL by storm.?
?We have taken it in our stride to not only be the unrelenting champions of tomorrow but also continue to honour the title of the ?people’s team? bestowed upon us. This year too, we will aim to mirror your expectations and win over every heart and mind in the county,? Khan said.
This edition of IPL, after Modi was deposed, has Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCi) vice-president Chirayu Amin as its chairman.
The fourth edition features ten team, with two new franchises- Sahara Pune Warriors and Kochi Tuskers. They are divided in two groups- A and B with five teams in each section.
A total of 74 matches as against 60 in the last edition are schedule in the 51-day extravaganza.
The inaugural ceremony is broadcast live from 6 p.m. on Setmax.
Group A consists of Deccan Chargers, Delhi Daredevils, Kings XI Punjab, Mumbai Indians and Pune Warriors India.
Group B has Kolkata Knight Riders, Kochi Tuskers Kerala, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Rajasthan Royalsand Chennai Super Kings.