The departure of Sachin ‘Little Master’ from world cricket, the god of all cricket lovers in this cricket-mad country, has been met with nationwide nostalgia for his sporting feats, achieved since his international debut against Pakistan in 1989. But what he did for cricket is nothing less than what Maradona did for Football. As a result he is now the role model of billions in the country. Not even in big cities where youngsters have number of opportunities to make their name, his stardom created during his prolonged career has given a hope for young ones living in small cities with limited resources to make it big. The other reason that has given a boost to the talent in smaller cities is the Indian Premier League which is now a global sports mega event.
Dehradun is not away from this cricket fever and this famous city can make its mark on IPL platform as well. Yes, I am talking about Dehradun’s IPL team. We can see Dehradun IPL Team as a new franchisee by 2015. Team Dehradun Live has gathered some relevant facts that further support this dream of fellow city mates.
Reasons why Dehradun can be the next IPL Franchisee
International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun
The design for the Rajiv Gandhi international cricket stadium to be constructed in Dehradun has already been finalised last year and the foundation was laid on November 2012. Rajpur has been chosen for the construction of the stadium. The development of Dehradun Cricket Stadium will be supported by ONGC. The CM said that this stadium will be made to international standards and will help Dehradun become a part of the international sports map. CM Bahuguna also expressed hope that IPL, Ranji Trophy and international matches will also be held at this stadium. This may be the preparation as IPL franchisee needs to have a home ground for home matches. Think about it!
Rajiv Shukla’s visit to Dehradun
The surprise visit of Rajiv Shukla, member of IPL committees and Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs signals to the possibility of Dehradun to be in BCCI’s plan of actions. Rajiv Shukla was the chief guest when Uttarakhand CM laid the foundation of the stadium last year. Shukla also said that Uttarakhand would be given recognition by BCCI on receiving the proposal from the state cricket association. Can you smell something here!
Dhoni’s Dehradun connection
I guess no need to write anything here. There have been a lot of incidents when Dhodi got associated with Uttarakhand, for example when Dhoni was chosen brand ambassador of Uttarakhand’s Tiger Conservation Mission, his ancestral house in the Almora district of Uttarakhand and the biggest of all getting married to Sakshi who hails from Dehradun. You never know, Dhoni might even own The Dehradun franchisee!
City’s Passion for Dehradun IPL Team
Like all other cities people in Dehradun also want their city to feature in IPL, which is one of the biggest sports league in the world. The city already has a facbook fan page of Dehradun IPL Team(www.facebook.com/DehradunIPLTeam) showing how eagerly people are waiting for this to happen. You can also join this page for latest updates on this development.
If what we have put together comes true, we can see our city cricketers making mark on the world map and can even go ahead and make their place in the Indian Cricket Team.
