The BIG Carnival called IPL

Indian Premier League- These 3 words are enough to send any Indian cricket fan into a tizzy. When Lalit Modi conceptualized this cricket extravaganza to counter the now defunct “rebel league” ICL, I believe he wanted to make a statement to the world and show them who the boss was in Indian cricket. And sure they did. Like Modi said in his inaugural speech, it was indeed a momentous occasion.

Cricket is a game loved by millions and is tailor made advertisements with short breaks between the overs. So naturally, IPL was lapped up by advertisers and fans alike. The broadcasting rights were sold for nearly a billion dollars. The idea of franchise owned teams brought in a lot of money to BCCI’s coffers. International stars being bought and sold under the hammer was never seen before in the history of the game. The players were naturally delighted for having been picked for astronomical sums as Indian owners, consisting of movie stars, liquor barons, corporate honchos and what not, splashed the cash at the auctions. The brands piggy backed on the great Indian carnival as almost every term in cricket saw some brand name being attached to it. The regionalistic rivalries were drawn. The icon players (some of whom did not remain icon players for long, unfortunately) were named. The show had just begun.

The first season was a dream. The spectator, watching at home or stadium, just could not get enough of it. There was a glittering opening ceremony, cheer girls, witty one liners displayed on the big screen, catchy music at the stadium, beautiful reporters etc. But it had cricket as its centre piece. It was christened as ‘Cricketainment’. It was wonderful to see the fans thronging the stadiums and supporting their team even when the chips were down. The strongest teams on paper went crumbling down on field and it was Rajasthan Royals, considered to be the weakest, which won. Befitting. Never perhaps will a domestic cricket tournament get any bigger.

But somewhere down the line, I believe IPL lost its focus or maybe just that the audience lost interest (The viewership is still very good, Mind you!). The long schedule did not help either. It began hogging the limelight for all the wrong reasons, be it the after match parties called ‘IPL Nights’ or Team India’s dismal performances due to so called IPL stress.  But still, IPL held on the viewers’ interest with it charm. A few last ball finishes, unbelievable comebacks, tense matches was the reason why cricket lovers still stuck to IPL. There were miraculous turnarounds, like the teams which finished last two places in the first season occupied the top slots in the second.

But I believe the tipping point came at the end of the third season, where a re-auction was to be done and two new teams were added. The team owners meant business. The icon players were no longer icons and were ignored at the auction much to the chagrin of their die hard fans.  Dravid went to Rajasthan from RCB, Dada to Pune from KKR, Laxman to Kochi from Deccan, Yuvraj to Pune from Punjab and many others. The loyalty was torn. The crowds were confused. This is not EPL where such player transfers happen regularly but the fans stand by their clubs. This is IPL. The teams were just 3 years old. Here, fans had a bond with their heroes which was much older than the teams.  They couldn’t shake it off at once. The outcome was heartening (and maybe what our nation’s founding fathers wanted). People from Bangalore supported Rajasthan royals and those in Kolkata roared when Dada turned up for Pune warriors.  The support for the teams came from all over India(and abroad) even they played against their so called ‘home side’. But the novelty of the idea had worn off and the increased number of matches caused a significant dip in its viewership. The allegations of spotfixing and other controversies weren’t helping it either. But enough said, it was an annual spectacle which most people waited for with bated breaths.

There has definitely been a lot of positives to take from IPL. It has also thrown up some interesting revelations. One of it is the unearthing of raw Indian talents. The exposure the young players get by rubbing their shoulders with legends will most definitely hold them in good stead in the coming years. Talents like Kamran Khan being brought in from nowhere(what happened later is another sad story altogether) was nice to see.

Bottom line: You can hate it or You can like it! But you can not definitely ignore it! IPL is here to stay!