For the love of Dhoni

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Thousands of fans thronged the Sports Hub in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday to watch the One Day International between India and West Indies. Among the spectators were  members of the All Kerala Dhoni Fans Association who had arrived to watch their favourite cricketer in action. As a token of their love, a 35-feet cut out of Dhoni was erected at the entrance of the stadium in Karyavattom.

The Dhoni fans poured in from every district in the state to pay tribute to Dhoni as they think that probably, this will be the last time that the star cricketer might play for the country if he retires next year. “We are around 400 members. We have arrived here with the conviction that India will surely win the ODI. However, our full love and support is with M S Dhoni, who is our favourite cricketer,” said Abhimanyu, one of the members from Kollam. 

Fans, both the young and old, wearing Dhoni-inscribed t-shirts continuously chanted his name. They eagerly waited to see Dhoni wield his magic  and had to make do with the former skipper getting only 50 runs from three innings he had played. “We had also arrived for last year’s match between India and New Zealand. It is always a pleasure to watch Dhoni in action,” said Thanseeh, another member.
For fans like Ivona, the ODI is an opportunity to see their favourite cricketers in action. 
“It was my ultimate dream to see M S Dhoni. I have waited 15 years for this day. I saved up money and bought a ticket to see my favourite team and Dhoni in action. I am sure Dhoni will take a century,” said Ivona Bhagya, employee, H&R Block, Technopark. 

Ibrahim Badusha from Beemappally says he is in the city with seven of his team members who are part of a cricket club. “We have our own team named DKZ. All of us have t-shirts with Dhoni’s name written on it,” said Ibrahim Badusha, Beemappally. Barton Hill College students arrived in numbers to watch their favourite team play.

“We are sure that Dhoni will cross 11,000 runs in his ODI batting career score after today’s match. I have a prediction that India will take 300 plus runs today,” said Venkita Narayan, a first-year student, Barton Hill College. There were some others who were eagerly awaiting to click a picture with M S Dhoni. “I arrived for the match just to click a selfie with Dhoni. The match is secondary for me,” said Arun Raj, spectator, Kottayam.