Banned from IPL, but CSK, RR going strong on Twitter

BANGALORE: Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals are out of sight this IPL but they are not out of mind, not at least in the social world. Despite the teams being disbanded, their official Twitter handles have continued to drum up support for their former players who have joined other teams this season. From posting group photos of the players in their new team shirts to going down memory lane and congratulating Ravindra Jadeja on his wedding, these two Twitter pages have held on to their past tightly. Both teams command a huge base on Twitter, with Rajasthan Royals having 759,000 followers while Chennai Super Kings have a whopping 2.16 million followers. And it’s not just the supporters who have kept the teams alive in the virtual world but also players like Dwayne Bravo who has been open about his sentiments for his former team. The outpour of emotion started with the April 14 game between Gujarat Lions and Rising Pune Supergiants in Rajkot. The CSK Twitter handle labeled the game as a ‘CSK derby between Thala (MS Dhoni), Helicopters, Carrom Balls, Fafulous Catches and Chinna Thala (Suresh Raina), Sir (Jadeja), Bravo’s dance and Baz and Smith’s Blistering Opening.

But the nostalgia didn’t end there. Pictures of former players of CSK and RR taking group photos found their way to both the team’s Twitter pages. On CSK’s handle the picture came out with the one-liner ‘The Family Reunion! #whistlepodu #sigh’.

While Rajasthan Royals have tweeted far less than Chennai Super Kings since that ‘reunion’ match the message from both pages are similar — their players might have left them but they are still Royals and Super Kings to these banned teams. The pictures and tweets are clear indication that despite being disbanded, the team has been working at some level to keep its memories alive. After all, both CSK and RR are supposed to come back in the 2018 IPL after serving out their two-year bans.