Latest news with #HyundaiSantro
Hindustan Times
04-05-2025
- Hindustan Times
Chandigarh: Lawyer, 2 friends attacked in brawl over tea order near Sector-17 ISBT
In a bizarre brawl, an advocate and his two friends were assaulted by five assailants near the Sector-17 ISBT on early Friday morning over a misunderstanding about a tea order, leaving one with broken teeth. Complainant Thakur Abhay Singh Chima, 24, a practising advocate at the District Courts Complex, Sector 43, told police that he had gone to visit his friends Kartik Chauhan and Ashutosh Sharma in Sector 37-D on Thursday night. Around 2.30 am, they drove to the Sector-17 ISBT to have tea. They parked their car and approached a tea stall on foot. Chima said as he placed an order for three cups of tea, five young men already standing near the stall absurdly took offence, believing that he was addressing them for the tea order. An altercation erupted and despite him clarifying that the order was made to the stall owner and not them, they got aggressive, Chima alleged. 'Enraged, they started hitting us,' the complainant stated. During the scuffle, one of the attackers allegedly retrieved a metallic 'plate-like' object from a grey Hyundai Santro car parked nearby and used it to assault the victims. The others rained punches and kicks on the three friends. Chima suffered injuries to the left eye and the back of the head. His friend Kartik sustained serious injuries, including broken front teeth, and wounds on his head and eye. Ashutosh also sustained injuries above the left eye. Before police could arrive, the assailants fled the scene in the Santro. The victims were transported to GMSH, Sector 16, for medical treatment by a patrolling police team. On Chima's complaint, an FIR was lodged under Sections 191 (2), 190, 115 (2) and 117 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against the assailants at the Sector-17 police station. Police are reviewing CCTV footage from the area to identify the culprits.
India Today
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- India Today
Forget IPL contracts, gully cricket can help earn big money and fame
"I was nicknamed 'Mobile' by my supervisor. That's because I used to get so many calls to play matches after I moved to Pune," Krishna Satpute recalled, reflecting on his early days as a tennis-ball cricketer in a new city. 'Eventually, my supervisor fired me, but advised me to focus on cricket.'For Krishna Satpute, who lost both his parents at 17 and had to take care of his younger siblings, it was all about struggle to stay afloat. It was also about dreams -- being famous, owning a motorbike, a car, and, one day, a house in the course of a 20-year career in tennis-ball cricket, Krishna achieved all those dreams, one six at a time, on the dusty, unkempt fields of Pune. In 2010, he won a motorbike as Player of the Series. By 2013, he had bought a Hyundai Santro. In 2016, he purchased a 1,400-sq-ft flat for Rs 39 lakh, paying Rs 15 lakh up-front."All my dreams came true because of tennis-ball cricket," Krishna told India Today Digital. "Now, I own property worth Rs 1.5-2 crore."Even the legendary Sachin Tendulkar – the God of Cricket – has recognised Krishna Satpute as the God of Tennis-Ball just Krishna, tennis-ball cricket or gully cricket has created several stars. Babu Patil, a Maharashtra Police officer, is one of them. Then there is Abhishek Kumar Dalhor. The 26-year-old tennis-ball cricketer from Haryana went on to earn an Indian Premier League (IPL) contract as a net bowler with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).advertisementMany of these players are now household names. You might be wondering – a household name from gully cricket? Just take a look at the Instagram pages of some top tennis-ball cricket stars, and you'll realise how popular they cricket in India is now a thriving parallel economy. From large tournaments offering lakhs in prize money to apps that connect players with teams and match fees, gully cricket has evolved from a casual pastime into a serious cities and towns, local tournaments are flourishing. In Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Delhi-NCR, gully cricket has gained a professional sheen. From single-day, six-over knockouts to full-blown multi-day tournaments with opening ceremonies, professional camera set-ups, commentary boxes, and corporate money for local cricket tournaments, listed on dedicated mobile apps, ranges from Rs 5,000 to Rs 15 lakh and has hosted some of the biggest tournaments in tennis-ball cricket history. That includes the Indian Street Premier League (ISPL) – India's first franchise-based tennis-ball tournament held in a stadium. The winners of the ISPL took home Rs 1 of the big names in tennis-ball cricket now earn between Rs 10,000 and Rs 25,000 per match. Top players often receive invitations to play in the Middle East, where the prize money for tennis-ball cricketers is substantial. Players from tennis-ball strongholds, including Mumbai, Karnataka, and Kerala, have frequently had the opportunity to travel to the UAE to play in tournaments. The ISPL is hosted at the Dadoji Kondadev Stadium in Thane, Maharashtra. It has been the hub for the league since its inception. (Image: ISPL) KRISHNA: THE GOD OF TENNIS-BALL CRICKETKrishna Satpute's journey into cricket began when he was just 13, in his hometown of Kurduvadi in Maharashtra's Solapur district, about 250 km from Pune. He would watch older boys play in his school and try to mimic their shots. One day, during a practice match, he got his chance. With four balls left, he smashed two sixes. That was it – he was 1998, while preparing for his 10th standard exams, Krishna played his first real tournament as a schoolboy, with a bat in hand and a spark in his soon, tragedy 2003, Krishna lost both his parents – his father, a former railway employee, and his mother – within months. He was just 17. Krishna had to take up menial jobs to support his family. Cricket took a backseat as he began working at a construction site, earning Rs 50 a were days when he and his wife went hungry. Even though he had to take a break from cricket, the game never gave up on his daily-wage job, Krishna began playing in small local tournaments, where the prize money was as modest as Rs 500 or Rs 1,000. Over time, he moved on to slightly larger competitions, with winnings of Rs 3,000. But after 2012, he began seeing real financial gains, with tournaments offering prize pools of Rs 25,000 to Rs 50,000 – figures that would have seemed improbable when he first picked up a 2016, Krishna's growing reputation had taken him beyond India's borders. He started playing in international tennis-ball tournaments held in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE, and even represented India in the ICC-organised Criiio Cup during the 2019 World Cup in ability to perform under pressure, coupled with his consistency, made him one of the most sought-after names in the Krishna earns anywhere between Rs 3,000 and Rs 5,000 per match, depending on the tournament's profile. For bigger events, his match fee can shoot up to Rs 10,000 or even Rs 25,000. Krishna Satpute (R) with Aditya Thackeray (L) and Prithvi Shaw at the Champion Supremo Trophy 2025. (Image: Krishna Satpute ) A GAME-CHANGER: ISPL OR INDIAN STREET PREMIER LEAGUEEven for Krishna Satpute, who had been in tennis-ball cricket for more than 20 years, the ISPL felt like a seismic shift. Tennis-ball cricket became more professional than ever because of starters, the ISPL, a 10-over-per-side tennis-ball cricket tournament, revolutionised the sport by introducing a franchise-based model akin to the in March 2024, the ISPL features six city-based teams – Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Srinagar – each backed by celebrity co-owners such as Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, and Hrithik Roshan. Sachin Tendulkar also came on board as an investor and a core committee member. Actor Akshay Kumar owns the ISPL team Srinagar Ke Veer. (Image: ISPL) advertisementIn the league's inaugural season, team owners paid a total of Rs 1,165 crore to buy the six franchises, underscoring the commercial viability of tennis-ball cricket at a professional backing from bigwigs in the Mumbai Cricket Association, the ISPL played a key role in helping tennis-ball cricket stars showcase their skills and grab SEASON 2: 30 LAKH REGISTER, PLAYER GETS Rs 20-LAKH CONTRACTThe second edition, held in January-February, only grew bigger and better. A staggering 30 lakh players registered for the second season. Players from 55 cities were shortlisted for the mega auction held in Mumbai in December Kumar Dalhor emerged as the highest-paid player, securing a contract worth Rs 20.5 lakh with the Mumbai franchise. Each of the 96 players who bagged contracts were paid at least Rs 3 lakh for the 2025 became the official broadcaster for the ISPL, and the growth was instant. By the end of the successful second season, the ISPL announced two more teams for the next Satpute played for the Hyderabad franchise after a Rs 8.5-lakh was at the ISPL that he met Sachin Tendulkar, his idol and childhood hero."Meeting Sachin was a lifelong dream," Krishna said. "I told him, 'Sir, people across India call me the God of Tennis Cricket.' He smiled and said, 'Yes, I've seen it all – the trophies, the fan clubs, your journey. You've come up through sheer hard work. The title suits you'."THE MANY BIG-MONEY TOURNAMENTS ACROSS CITIESIs the tennis-ball cricket craze limited to major leagues like the ISPL? Fortunately, state in India is now trying to tap into the professional side of gully cricket in the grassroots. The South is slowly but surely catching up with the North and the Ulloor Cricket, a YouTube channel run by four friends in Tamil Nadu's Ilayangudi town in Sivaganga started with a mobile camera and a few reels. Today, it has over two lakh subscribers, sponsors, and a state-of-the-art production tipping point came with a Rs 1 lakh tournament. Ulloor Cricket streamed it, and the response was explosive. They went big on streaming gully cricket, offering multiple professional cameras for as low as Rs 5,000 per camera for a two-day Riyaz, co-founder of the Ulloor, however, had a bigger vision. Inspired by the lack of representation of Tamil Nadu in national-level tennis-ball tournaments, Ulloor launched their own league – the Tamizhan Street Premier League (TSPL).In its first season, over 1,250 players registered. 350 were shortlisted in trials held in Trichy. They even hosted an auction at a Chennai hotel, developed a web app to track trial stats, and ensured every player received match fees. Prize money was guaranteed after they secured a major ball manufacturer as a CRICKET: HOW APPs ARE HELPING PLAYERS, ORGANISERSThe world of gully cricket has evolved very fast and gone digital. Today, mobile apps are central to how players find matches, form teams, and even get such app, with millions of users, connects players with scorers, umpires, organisers, and streamers. It also helps track player stats and offers real-time scores from matches in your city. Get a premium account, and your networking will be taken care of Gaurav Gautam, a software engineer from Gurugram who plays gully cricket on weekends.'I mostly play with my society team, but I also join other teams if needed. Sometimes people reach out through the app, or notice me during a match and invite me,' Gautam said. 'I've played over 300 matches in the last three years. I usually get Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000 per match.'Another example is Alok Arryn, also from started as casual cricket became a career for Arryn. He now runs a company that manages match operations, player scouting, and corporate events.'I manage three venues in Delhi-NCR and have organised over 600 matches and 70–80 tournaments. I lead a team of 17–18 people. There is real demand and money in this space,' Arryn told India Today TO STEP INTO LIMELIGHT, BECOME GULLY CRICKET STARCan your love for gully cricket lead to more than just playing on weekends?Well, life at the top might seem easy – but like any profession, it starts with hard work. That said, in today's world of social media and digital communities, it's no longer far-fetched to turn your weekend hobby into a side hustle or even a full-time how does one go from casual games to being noticed by big teams in the tennis-ball cricket circuit?'Just playing anywhere on the street won't help. You need to practice seriously and aim to join a proper, established team. These days, it's important to post your fitness drills and batting clips on Instagram,' Krishna Satpute told India Today Digital.'When someone hears about a player, the first thing they do is search for them on YouTube. If they see a video of the player smashing shots, they think, 'Let's give him a chance.' That's how many players are getting discovered now,' he explained.'And if a talented cricketer is stuck playing only in their village, someone more connected can step in and say, 'This boy has potential.' I've done this for many,' he like Krishna are already giving back to the fledgling tennis-ball on the verge of launching a cricket coaching centre in Pune that will train young players in both leather-ball and tennis-ball formats. It's his way of ensuring the next Krishna doesn't have to wait for a lucky the next time you lace up for a box-cricket match on a dusty Saturday afternoon, remember – you're not just playing for fun. You might just be playing for your was once brushed off as "timepass cricket" is now a growing ecosystem with scouts, sponsors, cameras, and real careers. Whether you're a batter who can hit those helicopter shots with ease, a bowler who nails yorkers, or someone who can turn chaos into a well-organised fixture list, there might just be space for you. And maybe even a pay cheque. For money and fame aren't just in ODIs and IPL, they are there in gully cricket Watch
