The Biggest Fan

Beyond the hits and wickets,Indian Premier League is also about glamour,and the boys at Kings XI Punjab are slowly warming up to that.

Written by Jaskiran Kapoor

April 13, 2011 01:26 AM IST

4 min read

Kings XI Punjab may not have had a great start in IPL Season 4,but team-owner Preity Zinta has her fingers crossed

Beyond the hits and wickets,Indian Premier League (IPL) is also about glamour,and the boys at Kings XI Punjab are slowly warming up to that. A look at the teams revamped official website reveals the transformation. Gilchrist and his boys are shown looking poker faced on a Bollywood style poster,which reads Naya Deewar,directed by Michael Bevan. This cinemascope avatar certainly lends a dramatic appeal to a team,whose brand ambassador Preity Zinta,has been striving to achieve a silver lining for some time. Seeing Zintas enthusiasm,one has to agree with one thing: this time,IPL Season 4 is going to be different. So what if the Kings lost their first match to Pune Warriors. Ever since IPL kick started in India,Kings XI has never won their first game. So,I am really not stressing over the first match. What were focused on,is getting better with each game, says Zinta,Kings XIs biggest fan,taking things with a pinch of salt and prepping herself for the second game today,versus the Chennai Super Kings at PCA Mohali.

Running three seasons with one team,which included stars like Brett Lee and Yuvraj Singh,Zinta and the co-owners of the Kings XI team are back in IPL 4 with a brand new team. For Zinta,its a new start,and shes more than excited to have Adam Gilchrist captain the ship. Last year was turbulent for us. There were controversies,court cases,and so many restrictions. We had only a Rs 100 crore bank guarantee for the auction,and once we got the courts stay order,we hardly had an hour to put a team together, recalls Zinta,speaking about a rocky last year which stalled her film career.

But this year,the lady who waved the tricolour at the World Cup semi-final encounter between India and Pakistan in Mohali and cheered Team India at the finals,is taking it easy. Theres no doubt that I miss our players,and that includes Yuvi and Brett for they are my family. And it left a weird taste in my mouth when the media linked me with them. All I can say is that I wish them well and look forward to a great innings.

For Zinta,emotions are reserved only for her films. When it comes to aggressive arenas like cricket,one has to be rough and tough for a cricketer requires to be slow,steady,to be able to strategise and play. Thats why Im still a fan and a frustrated cricketer! Im an actor first who is used to her job. In cricket,I sit out,shout and cheer for sixes,fours,wickets and boundaries. Im certainly not the one for ones and twos, says Zinta,who wants to enjoy this season for shes already been to hell and back. Quiz her how she dealt with the bad patch,and she says nonchalantly. Im an eternal optimist and a fighter,and I believe in striking back.

The posts on her Twitter account never stop,and Zinta is doing all she can to make a fresh connect with the fans. From season one to three weve come down from number two,to five and then the bottom rung. But now its time to resurrect, she smiles. The actress is all set to make a cheerful appearance today at the match in her red and white outfit with matching red and silver bangles (which she requests all girls to wear to the match) along with mascots Rocky and Ranjit. Jaisa Desh Waisa Bhesh, she signs off.