New Delhi: The grand homecoming of Chennai Super King lasted only one game due to protest over Cauvery issue. All home matches of Chennai Super King have been moved out after protests over the issue.   The city waited for more than two years for the Indian Premier League to return. The matches will now be played in Pune, the home ground of the erstwhile franchise Rising Pune Supergiant, for which M S Dhoni played for the past two years.

DMK leader M K Stalin and PMK founder S Ramadoss were the first to demand that the IPL matches be moved out till the Cauvery crisis was resolved. Actor-politician Rajinikanth added fuel to the protest when he asked IPL spectators to wear black badges. On Tuesday, groups clashed with policemen and cricket fans on the streets. Some managed to get into the stadium and unfurl banners; one of them hurled a shoe into the ground. Police arrested 780 protesters.

“The matches had to be shifted out as the city police said they would be unable to provide security in this situation,” IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla said in Jaipur on Wednesday. CSK’s first match in Pune will be against Rajasthan Royals on April 20. Visakhapatnam was also a contender because of its proximity to Chennai. But, according to Shukla, “CSK are not averse to playing in Pune”. The fact that Pune has connecting flights with all the cities that are hosting matches also played a big role in it getting the nod.
 
The CSK management expressed sadness at the matches moving out of Chennai. “It’s a disappointing day for us because we did our best to prepare MA Chidambaram Stadium for the event. We don’t have a say about the choice of the alternative venue. BCCI wanted us to play in Pune and we will do that,” CSK CEO KasiViswanathan said.