IPL 2025: In the first episode of the fans viewpoint, RCB fan Sujeeth Rao and CSK fan Rahul Bhat join us for an engaging chat about CSK vs RCB rivalry. Who will win Friday's clash at Chepauk? All eyes will be on MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli in the big-ticket clash. This landmark 18th season of IPL promises to be bigger than ever! Catch all the action live, at 7:30 PM on March 28, where Chennai Super Kings take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru, only on the JioStar Network and JioHotstar.
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00:00Welcome to India20.in. Thanks for talking to us. How is the IPL fever? As in, how are you enjoying the first set of matches?
00:07Hi, Akshay. Started off good with the first win. Looking forward to the… El Clasico was good. Looking forward to the RCB game now.
00:15RCB game. How about you, Rahul? Sujith?
00:20Yeah, I mean, for a change, we won the first game and in a dominant fashion. So, it gives us a lot of confidence going into the CSK game, for sure.
00:29And looking at the team composition itself, team looks good this year. So, really, really confident about how things will shape up this year for us.
00:37Great. And the crowds have been wonderful. Fans like you and me have kind of, you know, filled the stadiums and made it a carnival that we all expected it to be like.
00:45Talking about, you know, before we head into serious business, I just want to talk about this, you know, 18 years of IPL.
00:52I just want to ask you both, what were you doing a week before the first IPL began? Like, were you really excited?
00:59How did you, you know, take to this concept of IPL at that time? Because all we used to see was international cricket.
01:05We used to see Ricky Ponting go ahead against Aurob Ganguly. We used to see MS Dhoni taking on Adam Gilchrist or Matthew Hayden.
01:12But when they all came together, how was that feeling? What did you expect from IPL at that time?
01:17To start off with, I was still back in school at that point of time. To start off with, it was a very strange idea to even imagine Zaheer Khan calling to Dada and trying to get him out.
01:28It was very difficult for me to digest. Being from that generation, Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist used to be our nightmares in the night.
01:36And we never thought I would cheer for them to get big runs. And then they came to see Hayden was in CSK.
01:44Muthaiya Muralidharan came. Everybody else joined in. So, in the start, it was strange. But somehow, because we had seen football being a franchise-dominated sport,
01:55we thought, yes, that is the future. And that's how we started to follow IPL for mind.
02:01What about you, Sajid?
02:03I mean, the same thing. I think I was in 7th standard when IPL started off. So, it was a very new thing.
02:10We had just come afresh from winning a T20 World Cup in 2007. So, T20 was kicking out here in India.
02:17I honestly did not know what to expect from the IPL because it was a new concept for all of us.
02:24So, I mean, looking at the team composition, looking at the players that RCD bought back in the day, they were stalwarts.
02:30They were stalwarts in a different format of the game. But then the first game really got us to reality with the KKR.
02:37Like Brendan Macmillan went berserk against us. So, that was a great start to the IPL.
02:41Not for RCV, but I think it laid a foundation for us to see what things might come going ahead.
02:48And looking at 18 years now, it's come a long way. Now, we are not happy with 250.
02:53That's the state of T20 cricket at this point. So, yeah, it's been an amazing journey so far with the IPL.
02:59And any of you predicted that IPL would become this big? It's not just the biggest cricket league in the world,
03:05but it's among the top 5 sports leagues in the world in terms of broadcast revenue, in terms of following and all that.
03:10Did any of you even have the wildest imagination that IPL would get to here in, say, 16-18 years?
03:15I don't think even BCCI thought of it will become so big. Gradually, the game picked up.
03:22T20, as Sujit rightly said, 2007 was a big vector for T20 to become big in India.
03:28IPL picked up with BCCI becoming a dominating force in world cricket.
03:34And everyone else from being England cricketers also initially reluctant to join.
03:39And everybody else then decided that IPL is the place to be. We reached here. But it has been a great journey.
03:46You know, one thing I remember from the first season of IPL, I think I was in class 9 or something.
03:51I asked my father, I pressurized him to get a set-up box for me.
03:57You know, at that time, there was only cable TV. They were slowly moving to set-up box.
04:01And the set-max only used to come in set-up box at that time.
04:04So I think two days before the IPL started, I sat outside the set-up box.
04:09I think it was Tata or something. I sat outside the set-up box shop and forced them to get it done on the very same day.
04:16At that time, these installation also used to take time.
04:19They'll be like, okay, come and set up the dish, but it will take two more days.
04:22But I didn't want to miss the matches.
04:24Sujit Rahul, I just wanted to ask you, did you guys support CSK and RCB from the first edition?
04:29Or how has the fandom changed?
04:31No, I think it has been RCB since day one.
04:35So it's been 18 years again for me as well as a fan supporting this franchisee.
04:39We've gone through a lot of ups and downs.
04:41But I think what one thing stands out for us is the loyalty to the team itself, to the city that we stay in.
04:49For us, I think most of the fans here in RCB, it's probably not the players, but the franchisee itself.
04:55So we've been very supportive, hoping to lift that trophy one day very, very soon.
05:01What about you, Rahul?
05:03My version is a little different.
05:05Being from Jammu and Kashmir with no cricketing team or any alliance,
05:10the day MS was signed in, I knew where I had to go, where my loyalty resides.
05:15So 18 years again, yes.
05:17It started with MS for sure.
05:20But over the years, when I started travelling to Chennai from Jammu,
05:24interacted with people around here, with team members, other players coming in,
05:29the yellow colour has grown now.
05:31So it is more about a team now.
05:33MS, obviously yes, but the team stands afar.
05:36I'm a bit like Rohit here, I'm forgetting things, you know.
05:40I should have asked you to introduce yourself.
05:43Can you just tell me a little bit about yourself?
05:45And how you started watching cricket and how it all became a passion for you guys?
05:50So I'm actually from Jammu and Kashmir.
05:53I reside in Jammu.
05:55There is no one specific incident I can tell you when I started watching cricket.
06:00Cricket is a religion to all of us.
06:02When we started watching TV, I think that was the first game my father introduced me to.
06:06He was a big fan of Gavaskar and Krish Machara Srikanth.
06:09So that lineage started.
06:11Everybody from my family was a cricket fan.
06:13I do still remember the first six scored by MS.
06:18Back then, I told my father that there is some strange guy with long hair and he is playing cricket and hitting sixes.
06:24It started from there. 2008 CB series in Australia and everything.
06:28That ignited the fandom in me for him.
06:31And then came the IPL and T20 World Cup wins that obviously made a pivotal impact on my life.
06:37What about you?
06:39For me, I can clearly remember when I started watching cricket.
06:42I think it was the 2003 Australian tour when I used to wake up at 5.30 in the morning just to look at some of our Indian greats.
06:51And then I started playing cricket myself personally.
06:54So the interest and the passion for the game just took off from there.
06:58And the 2003 World Cup was the icing on the cake.
07:01But I know it was disappointing in the final.
07:03But that was a great run again. Just like 2023.
07:06It was a great run for us.
07:08So that's where I started watching cricket and I have never looked back from there.
07:11Are you from Bangalore? Are you a Bangalore fan?
07:13Yes, I am from Bangalore.
07:15Born and brought up in Bangalore sub.
07:17Great. So when we talk about 18, there is another 18 also which is very significant.
07:23It's Virat Kohli, right?
07:25So I just want to ask both your perspectives.
07:28One team over the last 18 years, do you think it's something that's probably will not be repeatable by any other player in the future?
07:36The stature of Virat Kohli.
07:40Whatever we say when we talk about teams and rivalry and everything.
07:43The stature of Virat Kohli in Indian cricket and in IPL is unmatched.
07:48The way he has played, scoring multiple centuries in the season.
07:51Being captain, non-being captain and still taking the responsibilities.
07:56Playing as an opener or even at No. 3.
07:58He is one of the best around there. There is no doubt about it.
08:03Kusum, for you?
08:05For me, I don't think this will be replicated.
08:09Because how dynamic the auction process has gotten recently.
08:13How desperate the teams were.
08:16They have become more result-oriented than being patient with the player.
08:20I think that plays a very important role.
08:22I don't really see anyone getting 18 years in a franchise unless there is another Virat Kohli that is coming up in Indian cricket.
08:29I don't really personally see that.
08:31But the changes of the game, how the game is going, I don't think there will be another 18-year player here in IPL.
08:39If there was one franchise that you would have wanted Virat to go.
08:44Keep your RCB love away.
08:47Just think that he was supposed to go to one franchise.
08:52What would that franchise be? Where would you love to see him apart from RCB?
08:56I think it would probably be Delhi because he is from Delhi.
08:59I think he would have loved to be there as well.
09:02If not for RCB.
09:04I think in the first auction, Delhi bid for Pradeep Sangwan rather than Virat Kohli.
09:08So I think his heart would have been in Delhi back in the day.
09:13Because he is from Delhi.
09:14But I think that is the only team I see him.
09:17I cannot digest him seeing any other team apart from Delhi.
09:21For sure, being an RCB fan.
09:22I am so glad that he is playing for us.
09:25That brings me to this question.
09:27Rahul, how would it be for a Thala and King reunion in CSK?
09:32Would you want to have it?
09:35Absolutely, why not?
09:36He is the best around here.
09:37We always had a tradition of great openers.
09:41He will be a good fit, I guess.
09:42And even get a trophy, I guess.
09:44But that could be like playing for Barcelona and then going to Real Madrid.
09:49Yeah, that's all happening.
09:51But talking about Thala, we all know the rivalry between CSK and RCB.
09:58But whenever Thala comes to Bangalore, there is a different kind of respect.
10:02He is loved by probably every Bangalore fan also, right?
10:06How does that emotion work?
10:08Like when he hits those sixes to break your hearts, how does it feel?
10:12Do you feel good?
10:14How is the bittersweet feeling?
10:16I think, I mean, first of all, keeping the rivalry aside itself.
10:20Dhoni has been the crown jewel of Indian cricket for the last 15-16 years.
10:25Like he has done everything that an Indian player, we expect them to do.
10:29So when he comes here in Bangalore, it's a treat for our eyes.
10:31Because we don't often see Dhoni play.
10:33Since he has just been in IPL.
10:35For us also, it's a great feeling to see him play.
10:38Because I don't know how long he is going to go from here.
10:41So every year that he comes to Bangalore to play,
10:43we believe that this might be the last time that we are looking at him.
10:47That's the feeling.
10:48So, I mean, I know sometimes, I mean, his favourite hunting ground,
10:51Srinaswamy, he hits sixes for fun here.
10:54But then, when the situation is tight, we really want him to get out as well.
10:58Because for us, team comes first.
11:00But I don't mind seeing a couple of hits going out of the park from MS Dhoni.
11:04Just like last year.
11:06Rahul, you spoke about your father being a Sunil Gavaskar and Srikant,
11:09Krishnamurthy and Srikant fan.
11:11So you probably had that Chennai connect from there only.
11:14The original OG Thala of Tamil Nadu cricket.
11:17How did your love for MS begin?
11:21To be very frank, it was only on one thing.
11:24It started that a small-town guy can make it big.
11:26I was from Jammu.
11:28For my engineering and for my studies, I shifted to Mumbai in between.
11:31And it was surreal in the start to be from a small city and then get going in a big city.
11:37MS actually paved the way.
11:40I think many commentators, Harsha Bogle as well,
11:43has said it in the past that he was one of the vectors of changing India.
11:48Telling India that even if you are from a small city,
11:50there can be a situation where you can make it big in the bigger city.
11:54So, yeah.
11:55That's lovely.
11:56That's lovely.
11:56You know, we all see cricket.
11:58We all see the fandom and all that.
12:01But it can sometimes touch personal lives as well, right?
12:04I think I saw Dee Gukesh, the chess world champion,
12:07speaking to Chennai Super Kings YouTube channel.
12:09And we all think that, okay, it's fans and all that.
12:13But he very, very beautifully explained how it made an impact on his game.
12:18Like how he remained calm throughout.
12:20When there is pressure, he kind of remembers MS Dhoni.
12:25He kind of visualizes how MS could have handled such stuff.
12:28So, is there such a personal connection with Virat Kohli for you?
12:33Well, I would say because for me personally,
12:36when Virat Kohli was young and he was upcoming,
12:39he was aggressive.
12:39And we all know that.
12:41Personally, to be very self-critical about myself,
12:44I am very short-tempered myself.
12:46So, sometimes I could connect with him to see why certain reactions are coming out of him.
12:52So, that is the connect that I saw.
12:54And the player that has gone on to become.
12:57And how he has evolved himself as a player personally as well in life.
13:02He has become more calm now.
13:03He has become more composed.
13:05I think that's a learning for all of us that probably young blood can have aggression.
13:09But I think as you mature, I think life has better options for you.
13:13And you might have to just tone down a little bit.
13:16Because the controlled aggression that we are seeing these days is more rewarding.
13:20From a guy who kind of went to pick fights with people,
13:25he has become the mentor figure now.
13:27As in seeing him chat to youngsters after IPL matches
13:30with that famous background music from StarCraft I think.
13:34That's a great thing to watch.
13:36You know, coming down to this match, Sujith, CSK, RCB,
13:41both are heading into the game with a win.
13:43How do you think that RCB…
13:46Do you think RCB can do well in that pitch in Chennai?
13:48Which probably stands out from the other pitches in the season.
13:52Like every pitch has been 200-220 written on it.
13:55But Chennai probably 160-170-180.
13:57Could be a difficult total.
14:00Yeah, that's a tricky one.
14:01Because I know Krunal Pandya performed well in the first game.
14:06We had Suresh with a very important wicket.
14:08But I think spinners are going to be the key in Chepauk as usual.
14:13I believe that we do have the spin attack
14:17where we can trouble some of the players.
14:19Because we have Livingstone who can bowl both leg and off-spin
14:22depending on what batsman, you know.
14:24So, I think we have the spin attack.
14:26I think what is going to be more important for us is Bhuvneshwar coming back.
14:30I think that is going to bolster our bowling attack even more.
14:34And with the batsmen, I think we have Rajat who can play spin well.
14:39And Chennai is known for having brilliant spinners now.
14:42They have Ashwin as well, adding to that list.
14:44So, I think it's going to be a great competition between the RCB batsmen and CSK spinners.
14:51But I think at the end of the day,
14:52all boils down to what happened last year here in Chinnaswamy, right?
14:55So, that is going to be playing in all of our minds.
14:59I think it's more on CSK's side that they really want to get back at us
15:03and get one over us after what happened last year.
15:06Yeah, I completely forgot that.
15:08I feel like, will that be spoken about in the stands?
15:10As in, are you travelling?
15:11Absolutely.
15:12Yeah, I am travelling to the game, yes.
15:15So, I think that is going to be spoken a lot.
15:18Because the nature of the comeback,
15:20I think it's one of the better comebacks that we have seen in cricket history.
15:23Because we were down and out last season.
15:25We had absolutely no chance of qualifying for the playoffs.
15:29And we made it up, beating CSK in that crucial game.
15:32I think that rivalry and us qualifying along with it, made it even bigger.
15:37So, this year, the hype around the game is just a little bit more than usual.
15:42And what do you make of Rajat's captaincy?
15:43He has an early impression, right?
15:45But he looked calm and he made the right moves.
15:48Giving those spinners the extra hours in the end.
15:50And one more thing I wanted to talk to you.
15:53As in, you haven't spoken about Hough.
15:55He is going to be a huge, huge factor in Chennai, right?
15:58He has played there.
16:00Hazlewood.
16:01So, I think, these two things, Rajat's captaincy and Hazlewood's impact.
16:05Yeah, I mean, Rajat's captaincy, like you said, it's too early.
16:08But one thing that I noticed, I don't know if you noticed as well, I think.
16:11Yeah.
16:11He got in a short leg right after a wicket.
16:14I think that shows that he is aggressive in his mind.
16:18And probably not from his nature.
16:19But to get Suresh back, to get Andres allowed.
16:22I think that speaks of the vision that he has for the team.
16:25Back the players.
16:26I think that is more important for the captaincy.
16:28I think these are the attributes that we are seeing in the first game.
16:31I really feel that he is going to be a really successful captain for RCB.
16:35And coming to Josh Hazlewood, he is a silent assassin.
16:39I mean, he always goes under the carpet.
16:42Like, his performances never get speaked of.
16:44But he does the job.
16:45He does the job for the team.
16:46He hits that length day in and day out.
16:50Like, batsmen have very less shots against that line length.
16:55So, he is going to be really important.
16:58But I think the support that he is going to get from the other fast bowlers
17:02will define our season for this year.
17:04And what about Virat?
17:05The way he took on spinners in that game in Eden.
17:08That should have given a lot of confidence, right?
17:10The guy keeps evolving every season.
17:13I think we don't speak about that often.
17:15We just say that, okay, he is gifted.
17:17He is kind of… He has that ferventness and all that.
17:20But look at the way he has evolved with the skills that he has brought into his game.
17:24Champions Trophy was a completely different meal.
17:26But now, with IPL, those slog sweeps which we seldom see him playing,
17:31he is kind of employing that more and more these days.
17:33We saw that a bit last year, didn't we?
17:36With the slog sweeps and taking out the spinners.
17:38I was looking at some stats early this morning.
17:402023, he had a strike rate of 111 against the spinners.
17:44And 2024, it's moved up to 137.
17:47Which shows that, even being successful as he is,
17:50he wants to improve.
17:51He knows where he is lacking in his game
17:54with the changes of T20 cricket that we have seen in the past couple of years.
17:57So, it's a lesson for all the youngsters as well.
18:01Irrespective of how good you are,
18:03you need to adapt to the changes in the game.
18:04And that will keep you performing.
18:06Otherwise, you wouldn't survive at the highest level for 18 years.
18:10It keeps saying, right, you should always be a student of the game.
18:13When you think you have known it all,
18:14then you stop learning and then you stop evolving.
18:18But how has it been the experience of watching matches?
18:21Yes, of course, you travel to a lot of venues and watch the matches.
18:23But Jio Hotstar, how has it been for this season?
18:27How has the experience been?
18:29I think Jio Hotstar, one thing is,
18:31just like how IPL is evolving,
18:33I think Jio Star and Jio Hotstar are evolving with their broadcasting quality.
18:38Because, like you said, when we started in 2008,
18:41so we had like Setmax and it was just one cam.
18:44We used to watch.
18:46Today, you see there is a player cam.
18:47There is so many different technologies evolving with the game.
18:51It's been a great experience watching at home as well
18:53because the viewing experience has just gone a top one notch up higher.
18:59And with Jio Hotstar, it makes me travel as well.
19:03Because, I mean, you cannot really sit at home and you have very important work.
19:06So, on the go, Jio Hotstar has been really helpful.
19:09I don't see a lot of difference in the quality of viewership,
19:13be it TV or the phone.
19:15It's just the screens are small when you travel.
19:17That's the only thing.
19:18But the quality has been top-notch.
19:20It gets the viewers very close to the action in the middle.
19:24So, I think it's really been that this season has been really,
19:28you know, thought about the fans and put in the broadcasting things inside.
19:32And Sujit, do you watch the commentary in local languages sometimes?
19:35Do you switch to Kannada?
19:37I do.
19:38I do sometimes.
19:39Not to Kannada, but to Hindi sometimes.
19:43But I think it's more on English because I kind of connect with different perspectives.
19:47Because when you go locally, it's more of an Indian perspective to the game.
19:51So, when it's English, it's more global.
19:53You understand different perspectives of why a player is going a certain way.
19:57So, I think that is what I prefer personally.
20:00But nothing to take away from the local commentators.
20:02They're doing an amazing job.
20:03But for me personally, I think it's always been English.
20:06Great.
20:06And how about the bold versus bold comparison?
20:09For the CSK versus RCB, who do you think will be the gold?
20:12And whom can we expect the bold youngster to step up?
20:17From RCB, the bold youngster to step up?
20:20That's an interesting question.
20:22Who would I pick?
20:23I think that's a really good question.
20:28Relatively, we are talking 43 and 36.
20:32I mean, Virat is going to be crucial for us in every game.
20:34I really want us this year to be playing as a team.
20:38Probably this year.
20:38Again, I'll probably go with Rajat again, being the captain.
20:42I know he's 30s, but relatively young in experience.
20:47Young captaincy as well.
20:48So, I want to see how he's going to react to that additional responsibility of being
20:52the captain of the team.
20:54So, that is going to be something that I'm going to watch out for this season.
20:57From the CSK standpoint, I think it's Rakshin.
21:00He's just gone one level up, I think.
21:03Are you saying this because he has a Bangalore connect?
21:07No, not really.
21:10I think a couple of days ago, Michael Vaughan was saying that Harry Brook needs to really
21:14top up his game because Rakshin has gone to another level.
21:17I think that speaks volumes of what people think of him.
21:21You don't often really see Michael Vaughan praising players outside of England.
21:25To see that, I think you know Rakshin is doing something good.
21:29Especially with all that pressure the other day to finish off with a 6-3, even with Dhoni
21:34on the other side.
21:34He just wants to win games for his team and nothing else.
21:37So, I think that's a great quality in him.
21:40Great.
21:40And what's your prediction for CSK?
21:42As in, what's your prediction for the two teams?
21:44Do you think both of them will make the playoffs or one of them will make it?
21:46Or both of them probably not making the playoffs this time?
21:50It's tricky because when you see some teams going 280s and 290s, you think are we doing
21:56the right thing?
21:57We're playing 180s and 200s when you look at Sunrisers.
22:00But there's always more than one way to skin a cat, right?
22:02Like we have seen Dhoni cat.
22:03Exactly.
22:04Yeah, I think that's going to be the key.
22:05I believe we have the team this year.
22:08I think RCB is going to make it.
22:09I also believe Chennai is going to do it because they've done it year in and year out, right?
22:13So, they know how to reach the playoffs.
22:15So, I think both of these teams will make it to the playoffs.
22:18If not, if not for one.
22:19Great.
22:19Rahul who has probably dropped off the call will be very happy listening to this.
22:23That you have given CSK the chit to go to the playoffs.
22:26But it's been great talking to both of you.
22:29Thank you for giving us your time.
22:30And I hope you enjoy the IPL season.
22:32And I also just want to say you can watch all the coverage on Jio Hotstar.
22:36But you can read about it.
22:37And you can listen to more views about it on indiatoday.in.
22:40If you have the time, please do check it out.
22:42We have a special page running.
22:43You can check it out there.
22:45And it'll be worth your time.
22:47Thank you so much for joining us.
22:48And let us all enjoy the IPL festival on Jio Hotstar.
22:51And every other platform that is coming on.
22:54Thank you for having me.