In sport, the only constant is fandom. Rather, it can be said that it is one of the rare constants in human life. Every other choice or preference may change, but not fandom. You might decide to dress differently or eat a different kind of food or live in another country or switch careers, but a Virat Kohli fan at the age of 6 will remain a Kohli fan at the age of 60. However many hundreds Steve Smith might end up scoring, a Kohli fan will always look to him as the Pied Piper of Indian cricket. That’s how cults are built. Take the Kohli example from yesterday. He is now a cult. Fans love him and his position as the one of the greatest crowd-pullers will never be in doubt. Fans continue to worship him.
As my colleagues, Rohit Juglan and Gargi Raut, reported from the Arun Jaitley Stadium, the build-up started early. “Never have I seen such madness in a Ranji game,” said Rohit when we spoke at 9am, half an hour ahead of the start.
“We were aware that we might need CRPF support to control the crowd,” said Rohan Jaitley, president of the DDCA, around lunch when the stands opened for the fans were all full. “We had already made plans with the police and Paramilitary. So we were prepared for everything.”
In fact, it can also be said that Kohli is responsible for the fandom we see for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Make no mistake, it’s not easy being an RCB fan. The team has always had star power, but they don’t have trophies. For all the trolling that the RCB franchise gets for not winning the trophy, it might seem that they has never even come close, but the truth is far from that.
RCB have often qualified for the playoffs in consecutive seasons, in addition to losing three finals (2009, 2011 and 2016). Despite the relatively underwhelming playoff record, not a single RCB fan has left the team. They make noise each time the team step out at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, and turn up year on year believing that the trophy will finally be theirs. It is much like the Chicago Cubs story. No World Series titles to show between 1908 and 2016, and yet, Wrigley Field was always packed. In fact, with each passing year, fan loyalty only grew stronger.
What is important to state here is that these fans are real ambassadors of the sport. They follow it with diligence, and support their idols with passion and commitment. Maybe this is why Lionel Messi cried when he left Barcelona, or our own Sunil Chhetri never left Bengaluru FC and will retire there. Such loyalties build a bond with fans that is immortal. Kohli, MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma are examples of such stars with a massive fan base.
Finally, it can be said that these fans, with their loyalty, enrich sport. Be it all the Kohli fans who turned up at the Kotla with Virat written on their body, or a Ram Babu, Sudhir Gautam or Sugumar, they are as much part of sport as the players. Each feeds off the other, and make sport what it is – the opiate of the masses, and a domain of positivity far removed from the toxicity that we see all around us.
Also Read: Jasprit Bumrah is the universal hero uniting the toxic sections of India’s cricket fandom
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