Latest news with #ArunSinghDhumal
News18
2 hours ago
- General
- News18
'This Is Very Tragic': IPL Chairman Says 'No Knowledge About RCB Event'
Last Updated: At least four people have lost their lives in a stampede-like situation near M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru during RCB's victory celebrations on Wednesday, June 4. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) celebrated their maiden IPL title win with fans in Bengaluru on Wednesday (June 4), but the celebration turned sour when at least four people lost their lives in a stampede-like situation near the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Reacting to the news, IPL chairman Arun Singh Dhumal, while speaking exclusively to CNN News-18, said, 'This (stampede) is very tragic. We had no knowledge of this event (victory celebration). Who is organising it? We have spoken to RCB management." Chaotic celebrations turned into a full-blown tragedy when fans tried to join a party inside the M Chinnaswamy Stadium to honour RCB's IPL triumph. Thousands converged outside the stadium as police struggled to take control of the situation, resorting to mild use of force as well. That did little to discourage the people, many of whom could be seen pressed against the stadium's entrance gate, desperate to get in. The death toll is expected to rise as many of the seriously injured are being treated at the nearby Vydehi hospital and Bowering hospital. 'Crowd was uncontrollable, police was finding it difficult, so we had to stop procession," Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said while speaking about the tragedy because of which a planned victory parade could not take place. The BCCI said the turn of events was shocking and the organisers should have been better prepared. 'It's most unfortunate, organisers should have planned RCB's IPL-winning celebrations better," BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia told PTI. 'When one organises a victory celebration of this magnitude, proper precautions and security measures need to be taken," he added. This was after the team landed in Bengaluru in the afternoon, received by Shivakumar at the airport. RCB defeated Punjab Kings by six runs in the IPL final at Ahmedabad on Tuesday to clinch their maiden title in 18 years. Fans lined up the streets and thronged the Chinnaswamy stadium to catch a glimpse of the stars, including the talismanic Virat Kohli. The scenes were a reminder of the historic welcome given to the T20 World Cup-winning Indian squad by Mumbai in July last year. However, things went haywire in Bengaluru. The much-anticipated open-top bus parade, which was allowed to proceed by Siddaramaiah from Vidhana Soudha to the stadium, could not take place as crowd became unmanageable for the police. The Bengaluru Traffic Police had already discouraged such a plan citing the congestion on the route. But outside the Chinnaswamy stadium, fans jostled to sneak inside and it ultimately turned into a tragedy. Thousands of fans were also seen waiting outside the Vidhana Soudha to cheer the players. (With inputs from PTI)
News18
3 days ago
- Sport
- News18
IPL Chairman Asks Virat Kohli To Reconsider Test Retirement: 'He's Probably...'
IPL Chairman Arun Singh Dhumal has urged Virat Kohli to reconsider his recent retirement from Test cricket, lauding his ever-improving fitness and comparing his commitment to cricket with Roger Federer's and Novak Djokovic's to tennis. Speaking on Sunday (June 1), Dhumal also said he was hoping that Kohli won't retire from IPL, too, if Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) manage to win the IPL 2025 title. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar revealed that Kohli contacted the selection committee in April to inform them of his decision to retire from Test cricket. Kohli publicly announced it in May through a social media post, stating that the decision was difficult but 'felt right' as he had given his all to the format since his debut in 2011. India have moved on from him, too, announcing several new faces for the five-Test tour of England in June.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
The IPL is a good barometer in India: its suspension shows us how serious this is
It's not often that two sets of people find themselves in the same situation on either side of one of the world's most fractious borders. When Friday dawned, amid swirling rumours of missiles wrecking neighbourhoods and falsehoods about pilots being captured, cricketers in India and Pakistan sensed that something was about to give. Related: IPL cricket suspended amid growing India-Pakistan tensions The Pakistan Super League acted first, telling all its players, coaches and officials to stay in their hotel rooms, bags packed at the ready. At some point in the day the call would come, they were told, and they should be ready to head to the airport and fly to the United Arab Emirates where the last eight games of that tournament would be held. In India, the first signs of just how precarious the situation had become emerged the previous evening when a match between the Delhi Capitals and the Punjab Kings was interrupted after 10.1 overs when the floodlights went off in Dharamsala. Initially a technical failure was thought to be the problem, but when senior officials of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association walked out on to the field to urge the crowd to disperse calmly, the penny dropped. On advice of security agencies and the state government, the powers that be that run cricket were told in no uncertain terms that this show must not go on. About 200 kilometres away in Jammu drone attacks and missile strikes were foiled, air raid sirens sounded and the city was thrown into a complete blackout. In the end, the Board of Control for Cricket in India announced that the 2025 edition of the Indian Premier League was suspended for a week, and a further decision on whether the tournament would resume, be played later in the year or moved to another country would be taken then. At the same time though, logistics teams at the IPL franchises were scrambling to figure out how to get overseas players back to their countries pronto. 'Look, even if it resumes in a week, the players can come back. For the moment, their safety and mental comfort is the most important thing to us,' an official from the Delhi Capitals said, declining to be named as the situation was in flux. 'We are looking at charter flights, commercial airlines, all options. Ultimately the players will take the call but I'm sure they are waiting for advisories from their respective countries.' There were 12 league matches plus the playoffs and final remaining to be played in the IPL when it was suspended. While it may appear that this was the most obvious thing to do, given the insignificance of a cricket tournament in the larger scheme of things, the IPL is actually an unusually accurate barometer of the state of affairs in India. The IPL chairman, Arun Singh Dhumal, is the brother of Anurag Thakur, the former BCCI secretary and politician from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and has served variously as union minister for sport, information and broadcasting and finance. The most recent BCCI secretary and current International Cricket Council head, Jay Shah, is the son of Amit Shah, the minister for Home Affairs. This overlap and proximity of politics and cricket ensures that the IPL is acutely aware of what the situation on the ground really is and how quickly things might escalate or de-escalate. Aside from the obvious security threats, those involved with the IPL have the pulse of the nation. The preponderance of probabilities: the physical danger to those involved, the sentiment of the largest segment of the audience and the jitters that sponsors felt at being involved with something that could backfire badly, should something untoward happen, meant that the IPL had to be suspended. This decision shows that the IPL has learned from when it played out for far too long in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. At a time when there were no hospital beds to be had and crematoriums were running out of wood to burn, this garish festival of cricket and excess continued until the public could take it no more and a groundswell of negative reactions forced the hand of administrators. To halt a tournament of this scale is not a decision taken lightly, given the wide range of stakeholders. From those who directly benefit, the players, the broadcasters, the support staff, to the wider cricket ecosystem that hits its annual targets in two months of competition, there is so much riding on the IPL that even suspending it temporarily leaves thousands out of pocket. But the time had come when it was no longer a matter of inconvenience or commerce. Even the IPL does not play on when it's a matter of life or death.
India.com
09-05-2025
- Sport
- India.com
'It was scary....': IPL cheerleader narrates tale after Dharamsala blackout…
'It was scary....': IPL cheerleader narrates tale after Dharamsala blackout… New Delhi: A female cheerleader described a frightening incident during a disrupted Indian Premier League match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals in Dharamshala on Thursday. The game was halted prematurely at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium. A power outage, attributed to air raid alerts in nearby Jammu and Pathankot stemming from the India-Pakistan conflict, halted a Punjab Kings cricket match in the 10.1st over, with the team at 122/1. Initially believed to be a simple power failure, the outage was later linked to the military conflict. Following a security alert, the IPL chairman, Arun Singh Dhumal, oversaw the complete and immediate evacuation of the Dharamshala stadium. A cheerleader documented the event on social media. A cheerleader described a frightening stadium evacuation during a game, fueled by panicked shouts of 'bombs.' The experience left her deeply shaken and wanting to leave Dharamsala, expressing hope for support from IPL organizers. She reported feeling shocked and overwhelmed by the event. BCCI arranges special train to transport players Due to challenging conditions and logistical difficulties in Himachal Pradesh, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) organized a Vande Bharat Express train to move Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings players, along with the broadcast team, from Dharamshala to Delhi. 'Very very scary' – Cheer leader's SHOCKING video from Punjab Kings Vs Delhi Capitals IPL match in Dharamshala. — Manobala Vijayabalan (@ManobalaV) May 8, 2025 Approximately 300 individuals, comprising players, support staff, and broadcasting personnel, will travel by high-speed rail, according to a source within the BCCI. This method is intended to provide efficient and secure transportation.
News18
09-05-2025
- Sport
- News18
BCCI Expresses Interest To Host 2027 World Test Championship Final: Report
Last Updated: The BCCI has expressed interest in hosting the 2027 World Test Championship Finals. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has expressed interest to host the 2027 World Test Championship Finals. The WTC final has been held by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for the past two as well as the upcoming edition in June between between Australia and South Africa. As per a report in The Guardian, BCCI want to stage the WTC final after the current WTC cycle and has submitted an intention to bid for the 2027 final at the ICC Chief Executives Committee meeting in Zimbabwe last month. 'The Guardian has learned that India expressed their intention to bid for the 2027 final at a meeting of the ICC's chief executives committee in Zimbabwe last month. The Board of Control for Cricket in India is represented on the ICC committee by its chief executive, Arun Singh Dhumal, while his predecessor Jay Shah is chair of the ICC, so a formal Indian bid would be regarded as a fait accompli," the report in The Guardian stated. The 2021 World Test Championship final between India and New Zealand was played at the Rose Bowl in Hampshire, England,while the following year, India andEngland face off at The Oval in the WTC final. This year, the final will be held between Australia and South Africa at Lords from June 11 to 25. Tickets for this year's final have already been sold out for the first four days. The ICC though is concerned about poor attendance if the 2027 final is held in India. 'While the England and Wales Cricket Board had not assumed it would host the WTC final in perpetuity, the English summer and a strong domestic ticket market regardless of which teams qualify makes it a natural venue. The ECB is understood to be pushing for a quick decision, as it will need time to arrange an additional home Test for England in 2027 if the WTC final is taken elsewhere. The ICC has concerns about taking the WTC final to India however, chiefly the prospect of poor ticket sales should India fail to qualify. Next month's final at Lord's is sold out for the first four days, while the 2023 final at the Oval was also sold out despite England not being involved," the report added. The 2025-2027 Cricket World Cup (WTC) cycle will continue with the nine-team single division format. The tournament will get underway with India's five-Test tour to England, starting June 20. However, it will be intersting if India secures the right to host the 2027 WTC final, and Pakistan qualifies for the final. First Published: May 09, 2025, 19:16 IST
