From being shooed away for running on the pitch during matches, to now getting a dedicated space by the side of the field, cricket just got ‘dog friendly’.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) may have not won the Indian Premier League (IPL) even once since the inaugural season in 2008, but they are often lauded for their gestures on and off-the-field. Ahead of their second match of the season, RCB have introduced areas dedicated to dogs for families who wish to bring along their pets to the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru.
RCB announced the news of the newly-designed ‘dogouts’ on Twitter yesterday. The exclusive pet-lounge ‘Dugout’ has pets and their owners.
Why leave your furry friends behind on match day? For the first time in IPL, pet parents can watch the match with their pets. RCB DogOut is an exclusive pet-lounge at the Chinnaswamy Stadium with specially designed seats for pets and their hoomans#RCBLovesFurry #PlayBold pic.twitter.com/rVEVVMv1wp
— Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) March 27, 2019
It will be one of a kind event in 12 seasons of IPL as RCB take on Mumbai Indians (MI) in search of a win at home after a dismal show in the opening match against Chennai Super Kings.
Here’s how RCB fans reacted to the initiative:
Wonderful team…. You deserve to win at least fair play award for this only
— Akshay Sharma (@akshaypasu) March 27, 2019
There are so many reasons to Love RCB but the major reason is this #doglove @imVkohli love u champ
— Sampada Mudagal (@SampadaMudagal) March 27, 2019
Perfection man. A facility to lead for #VIVOIPL #Chennai #IPL #PerfectFan
— Abhishak (@ImAbhishak) March 27, 2019
However, one of the Twitter user had a valid concern:
Will be interesting to see how RCB’s @RCBTweets DogOut initiative works today in Bengaluru. How will the dogs react to noise levels (nearly 40,000 spectators n music) at Chinnaswamy stadium? Hope they r safe #IPL2019 #RCBvMI
— APRAMEYA .C (@APRAMEYAC) March 28, 2019
If all goes well, it will be one of the best initiatives taken by an IPL team. But it will be really tough for many cricketers including Virat Kohli (fielding near the dugout) to not lose their concentration.
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