Follow UsSpecial arrangements were made to telecast the Railways vs Delhi match in Ranji Trophy 2024-25, just because one man- Virat Kohli was playing his first Indian domestic match in 12 years.
The broadcasters made sure that they squeezed every penny out of the overtime they were made to do as one could only see Kohli on the screen after every ball, even though he was merely fielding after Delhi skipper Ayush Bodani won the toss and opted to field first.
But that was not all. It wasn’t just the broadcasters, but even the spectators, almost all of them came to see just Kohli. The entire Gautam Gambhir stand was packed to the rafters, although the official attendance was not disclosed at the time of writing this.
Videos of nearly 2 km long queues outside the Arun Jaitley Stadium near the Feriz Shah Kotla fort in New Delhi, went viral on social media with Kohli fans claiming only he was the last of the Indian superstars who could pull such a crowd.
Only the Gautam Gambhir Stand and the Old Clubhouse were made available for the seating and one could not find even a single seat empty from the glimpse they could get through the live streaming provided by Jiocinema.
Such was the volume of people entering the stadium, the authorities had to open an extra gate. “Gate numbers 16 and 17 which were allocated earlier for entry were not enough as a result, Gate number 18 too had to be opened to accommodate safe entry,” Indian Express reported.
The fans have come out in huge numbers for the Delhi vs Railways match 👌👌
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) January 30, 2025
The Arun Jaitley Stadium is buzzing 🔥#RanjiTrophy | @IDFCFIRSTBank
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/IhwXam3F5T pic.twitter.com/ATCyjCAX1Y
Since Delhi were not batting first on Day 1, the numbers are likely to go up on Day 2 and the Delhi and Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) might have to throw open some parts of either the North Stand or the Virat Kohli Stand itself.