Hyderabad, June 14: Milions of Telugu cricket fans changed their sporting icons for a day on Sunday, as they shouted, clapped and cheered lustily for film stars in action at the MAA Tollywood T20 cricket tournament held at the Lal Bahadur Stadium to raise funds for poor movie artistes and other sections of society.
With almost all big and small names in attendance – some on the field and a whole lot of others in the gallery – the capacity crowd couldn’t have asked for more.
The display, though short of professional level, didn’t fail to entertain the spectators who lapped up every moment of the action played out between the four teams – Chiru Cheetahs, Balaiah Lions, Nag Kings and Venky Warriors. That the matches are not just fun but some real competitive cricket became clear soon after the first encounter, between the Balaiah Lions and Venky Warriors began, which the latter won convincingly. Nag Kings won the next rain-interrupted match with Chiru Cheetahs and then lifted the trophy by beating Venkatesh Warriors in the final.
Akkineni Akhil, son of Nagaruna, was declared man of the series for his all-round performance. Jr NTR with his batting (23 runs) and Ram Charan Tej with his bowling and fielding exploits (three wickets and two catches) entertained the crowd. The Movie Artistes Association handed over a cheque for Rs 15 lakh to Chief Minister K Rosaiah for the benefit of handloom weavers, Rs 8 lakh to city commissioner AK Khan for police fund, Rs 5 lakh for the AP Film Industry Employees Federation and Rs 3 lakh for AP Cine Dancers and Directors Association.
The organisers of the event, Rhythm Media, gave the association a cheque for Rs 1.5 cr.
–Agencies