Ranji Trophy: Fans jostle to enter Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium, no one injured

NEW DELHI: There was a brief rush and jostling outside the Arun Jaitley Stadium on morning as fans, who had gathered to see Indian superstar Virat Kohli play his first Ranji Trophy game since 2012, tried to make their way inside.

'Fans gathered to watch Virat Kohli'

No one was injured in the incident, police said.Initially, only one gate was open for entry and people started pushing each other to get inside the stadium, a Delhi Police statement said.

Police:The Stadium was already packed

Thousands of fans queued up to watch Kohli, who is playing for Delhi against Railways, in his first domestic red-ball appearance in 13 years.

The 'Gautam Gambhir Stand' was already packed to the rafters and it hardly took time to fill the lower tier of the 'Bishan Bedi Stand', taking the crowd count well past 12,000 at toss.

THE FANS AT ARUN JAITLEY STADIUM FOR THE BIGGEST SUPERSTAR IN MODERN ERA 🐐

- This is King Kohli's Kingdom. pic.twitter.com/l2WNCxeFga

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) January 30, 2025

The deafening roars of "Kohli, Kohli" could be heard from a distance as the former India captain took the field with the rest of the Delhi teammates.

The deafening roars of "Kohli, Kohli" could be heard from a distance as the former India captain took the field with the rest of the Delhi teammates who too were experiencing something special. Meanwhile, Delhi have opted to field first after winning the toss.

TOTAL ATTENDANCE 15,748 IN DAY 1 AT ARUN JAITLEY STADIUM FOR RANJI MATCH.

CRAZE OF VIRAT KOHLI 🔥 pic.twitter.com/1kYGrGZpnD

— Vikas Yadav (@VikasYadav66200) January 30, 2025

At first, the DDCA opened the roughly 6,000-capacity 'Gautam Gambhir Stand' for spectators but sensing the crowd situation could go out of hand, the officials were forced to open the 'Bishan Bedi Stand' which can accommodate around 14,000 people.