Who would Bengaluru cheer for—their talisman Kohli or CSK’s evergreen hero Dhoni in probably his last song?

A month ago, Royal Challengers Bengaluru looked buried. But they have been reborn like the mythical phoenix. With Virat Kohli giving them wings to fly, they have scripted a stunning turnaround to inch quietly to the play-offs, which looked like a farfetched dream in the middle of April.

Win their last league match on Saturday, all those criticisms about the strike-rates and lack of frontline spinners and a toothless attack would be forgotten. A meme material for much of this season, they have an opportunity to enter the banter room. Muted just four weeks into the IPL, the chants “Ee saala cup namde” are beginning to be heard again slowly.

Like Chepauk, Chinnaswamy Stadium could intimidate the opposition in what is virtually a knockout game for both teams. The crowd could get firmly behind their team. The decibel levels could even surpass that of Chepauk. And for their biggest game of the season, when RCB need their 12th man to be firmly on their side. But all things point to a divided house on Saturday evening.

Those eyes! 🔥

Our photographer just marked himself ‘Safe’ after clicking this beast of a picture! 📸🤩#PlayBold #ನಮ್ಮRCB #IPL2024 pic.twitter.com/qdDmnufOFh

— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) May 17, 2024

For, there is the familiar figure of MS Dhoni waiting to test their resolve. The demand for tickets has shot over the roof, and understandably so. Not just because this is a must-win contest for both sides but because there is a strong possibility of this being Dhoni’s last IPL fixture should Chennai Super Kings lose. Officially, tickets have been grabbed as high as Rs 79,894. It is the price that is on offer to possibly see Dhoni vs Kohli for one last time in the IPL before the end cards are played.

Last dance?

There are already enough hints about it. Dhoni has already passed over the captaincy. At 42, with his knee pain only doubling up despite the surgery, he is gradually postponing his arrival into the middle, even sending Shardul Thakur ahead of him. Behind the scenes there is talk that with big auctions around the corner, Dhoni wouldn’t take up a big chunk of their purse and seamlessly move into the dugout. So it could be his last dance. Whether Dhoni would get his wish of playing his last match in Chennai remains the biggest question.

Wherever they have gone, they have looked like the home team with fans sporting the No 7 shirts. Even the Wankhede was not an exception. At other venues like Lucknow, Dharamsala, and Visakhapatnam, they played away games with overwhelming fans in yellow. Here, where RCB have a local and loyal fanbase, despite the CSK vs RCB rivalry that goes beyond cricket, Chinnaswamy doesn’t look any different.

The reception Dhoni and CSK received when they entered the stadium on Friday was a definite indication. Though only a handful of fans were there when RCB’s team bus entered, for CSK it swelled to nearly 100. You needn’t wait till you get to Bengaluru to get the feel. Even as the Chennai-Mysore Shatabdi entered the KSR Bengaluru junction, quite a few CSK faithful cleared their throats with chants of “CSK, CSK” before giving space for laughter. At the Residency Road, which is adjacent to the stadium, a couple of sports goods shops were flaunting CSK jerseys in their display boards ahead of RCB. In the vicinity of the stadium, it was not easy to miss young and old men selling tickets in black at double the price, with the asterisk no bargain attached to it.

Welcome to Bengaluru, Mahi! ❤️https://t.co/ERTQi47Mtr#PlayBold #ನಮ್ಮRCB #IPL2024 #RCBvCSK

— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) May 16, 2024

That every seat at the Chinnaswamy would be taken on Saturday is a given. As much as it is RCB vs CSK, it will be more between Kohli vs Dhoni. Unlike Kohli vs Rohit Sharma or even for that matter Rohit vs Hardik Pandya, there is none standing opposite Dhoni. At the Wankhede as he walked in and hit three sixes in the final over, even Rohit was spotted gushing at the atmosphere. Last IPL, at the Chinnaswamy, Kohli felt the same, with his wife Anushka Sharma picturing the moments from the stands. Saturday won’t be any different. Irrespective of the high stakes clash that is for RCB, even the RCBians seem to have as much of a soft-corner for Dhoni as the rest of India.

Rain on the parade?

This has been a strange summer in Bengaluru. For a city that is soaked in greenery all around, this April mercury levels hit unforeseen highs of 40 Celsius. But similar to how RCB’s has turned it around, even the weather has improved for the good. Rather for the worse in RCB’s case. Whenever the CSK vs RCB banter begins, the weather in the garden city is often used to settle the point. On Saturday, the whole of Bengaluru would be praying for the skies to stay clear. The margins are thin. RCB required nothing but a win. CSK could make it even if they lose, provided the margin is small. If they win, there is a possibility of them finishing in the top-two.

Both teams though will miss key personnel. Will Jacks, who has been central to RCB’s turnaround, has left for national duty. So did Moeen Ali to join his England teammates for the series against Pakistan. But on Saturday, only Dhoni, Kohli and a playoff push, perhaps in that order, would matter.

*****

Relief: Improving weather

Though an Orange alert has been issued for Bengaluru from May 17 to 19, the forecast is beginning to improve. On Friday, the city woke up to steady rain. But by afternoon, it started to relent. Though it remained gloomy throughout the day, when RCB and CSK trained in the evening, there was no signs of downpour. Even the groundstaff left the pitch open throughout the afternoon. The Chinnaswamy Stadium has been a high-scoring venue and both teams will be playing on a pitch where the highest score is 186, which KKR chased against RCB. There, though, is scope for rain on Saturday evening. Should there be a delay, the cut-off time for a five-overs a side match is 10:56 PM.

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