Stadium on alert: A jawan scans the Dhurwa greens for threats on Tuesday, the eve of the KKR-Pune Warriors clash. Picture by Prashant Mitra

There are the Knights and there will be the Warriors, but Ranchi wants no one but the Baadshah himself.

The craze for T20 cricket is being capped by the clamour for one glimpse of Team KKR owner Shah Rukh Khan, who is yet to confirm his presence in the second IPL match on the Dhurwa pitch on Wednesday.

KKR co-owner and demure Bollywood beauty Juhi Chawla has, however, promised to grace the occasion. “Juhi will reach either late tonight (Tuesday) or early tomorrow morning. About SRK, it’s still a guessing game,” said a KKR event management official.

Hotel insiders offered a faint ray of hope for the Baadshah’s fans, saying two business class suites on the top floor were being readied, one each for the two stars.

According to sources, rooms have also been blocked at Golden Tulip, a hotel owned by the Rose Valley Group that happens to be one of the sponsors of the tournament.

Ticket managers are, meanwhile, hoping to cash in on this projected Bollywood blitz krieg at the international stadium complex.

During KKR’s match against Royal Challengers Bangalore on May 12, the stadium — which can seat precisely seat 39,450 — had seen empty stands with the live T20 fan count not exceeding 27,000.

“But, this time, things may be even better. After all, we will have Bollywood stars coming,” said an official, not willing to be named.

A senior JSCA official too predicted bigger turnout for Wednesday’s KKR-Pune Warriors match. “I cannot give you exact sales figures right now, but from what we have gathered from word of mouth, it seems people are doubly enthusiastic for the game because of the stars,” he said, pointing out that the element of surprise over SRK was only helping in building the excitement.

“Let’s see what happens tomorrow,” he added.

The JSCA has also issued passes to guests and dignitaries of the city, which is again likely to boost numbers. “We are flooded with requests for more passes,” said an official.

Another JSCA official echoed that the SRK factor was still playing strong in the minds of fans. “They expected to see him in the first match, but he didn’t turn up. Also, Chris Gayle was a big draw. But now, it is the surprise element over SRK alone that will bring people to the stadium,” he said.

Karun Sahay, who along with friends was in queue at the online booking counter in Dhurwa, said: “We didn’t go for the first match. I just hope that we get lucky in the second — both in terms of runs and star-gazing. I am sure Yuvi will entertain us with a brilliant knock and SRK won’t disappoint us either.”

Another bunch of youths, who bought tickets on Monday, said the IPL had an reached point. It is do or die for KKR and we wanted to catch the action live. Besides, there is still hope of SRK making a last-minute dash for his team” said Akhilesh Kumar, a student and T20 fan.

Since low run rate has been a concern on the new and sluggish pitch, JSCA officials said they were working overtime to help improve scores. Groundsmen were seen rolling the track to give it a better bounce and a sporting wicket.

Which tourney do you want to see in Dhurwa after IPL?

Tell ttkhand@abpmail.com