Mumbai, May 25 (IANS) After being crowned Indian Premier League (IPL) champions for the second time, Mumbai Indians invited their jubilant fans to the Wankhede Stadium here on Monday night to join the celebrations with the victorious team.
Skipper Rohit Sharma and his team, who will reach the Maharashtra capital from Kolkata on Monday afternoon, will head for their home ground along with team mentor Sachin Tendulkar, with his family, and co-owner Nita Ambani to celebrate at 8 p.m.
“The entire team, support staff and everyone in Mumbai Indians is converging at the Wankhede Stadium at 8 p.m. The idea is to bring back the cup and acknowledge the support Mumbai Indians has received from the city and the fans here. The entire team is reaching Mumbai by 4.30 to 5 p.m.,” a Mumbai Indians official told IANS.
Team icon and cricket legend Tendulkar got into a celebratory mood and invited fans to the Wankhede.
“Celebrating the win with fans at Wankhede Stadium on May 25 at 7:45pm. Let’s relive the wonderful moments of a victorious 2015!” Tendulkar tweeted on Monday.
Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, who took 18 wickets from 15 games, also invited fans to join them.
“Come guys join us in celebrations at Wankhede stadium from 7.30 pm onwards. Look forward to seeing u all there,” Harbhajan tweeted.
Team chief mentor Anil Kumble also tweeted, “Many thanks to all MI supporters. Join us in celebrating our IPL win at Wankhede at 8 pm, Monday. See you all at Wankhede!”
Entry to the stadium will be free on first-come-first-serve basis. The gates will be opened at 6.30 p.m. while the celebrations will start at 8 p.m. and will end after an hour. Bollywood celebrities and sports personalities are also expected.
“Entry is completely free to the stadium. Fans can start coming from 6.30 p.m. onwards. Bollywood celebrities, sports personalities are also expected to join the Mumbai Indians. It will be an hour long celebration. Sachin Tendulkar along with his family is expected to be at the stadium,” the official said.
Amid showering of confetti, fireworks and team huddles, Mumbai Indians celebrated their triumph at the Eden Gardens after a thumping 41-run win over Chennai Super Kings in the final on Sunday night. Mumbai had also lifted the trophy back in 2013.