To justify my last post, we witness the case of Chris Gayle – the West Indies cricket captain. As if going straight from T20 to test match cricket wasn’t bad enough, the Calypso King chose to play one more game for his IPL team which cannot win even if the match was fixed for them. He joined his team 2 days prior to the 1st test match, starting today. With the WI batting failing miserably in the tour games, the team badly needed their skipper but he's more interested in earning the big bucks. This is only the beginning of the damage that IPL will do.
3. A window for IPL, another window for Champions League…
There have already been some requests for a window in the international cricket schedule for the IPL. Not surprisingly, these requests (or demands) have come from the IPL promoters themselves.
These demands may seem to be very ambitious. But today, money rules the world, and cricket is no different. Given its humungous financial strength, the BCCI enjoys most of the power and clout. Comparatively, ICC and most of the cricket boards are extremely weak, and often have to give in to the atrocious demands of BCCI.
If the IPL circus continues, I wouldn’t be surprised if they manage to bully ICC into creating a separate window for the IPL. That will be the proverbial ‘inch’. The goons will then want a window for the ‘Champions League’. Who knows what could happen after that!
4. Injuries, injuries and more injuries
Many cricket fans may not know this, but Mathew Hayden played through IPL 2008 with a niggling ankle injury. He did not have a great 1st season, and the ankle did not get the rest needed. Hayden had to play through a tough international schedule without any rest. He then lost his form and runs dried up. The pressure on him increased and the selectors took him to the brink. He had no option but to end his Australia career. This is the first instance of IPL causing a (great) cricketer to relinquish national duties, there will be many more.
This year Jacques Kallis is playing with a thumb injury. And then there is the curious case of Dwayne Bravo. Apparently, he is not fit enough to play test matches, but somehow, ODIs and T20s are fine. So he’s raking in the moolah while West Indies is represented by some mediocre newcomers.
I have not even touched upon the most infamous injury story of the year. The story of Andrew Flintoff, who re-injured his knee and had to go in for surgery! He will miss the West Indies series, and has been left out for the T20 World Cup as well. The papers in England are full of debates and hate-columns. Unfortunately the Indian media lacks people of integrity and/or courage to come out with the facts and some sincere analysis of the state of affairs.
The injury epidemic has now hit the Indian cricketers as well. Our bowling spearhead Zaheer Khan has hurt his left shoulder. Sehwag and Yuvraj have split webbings. Captain cool Dhoni has a back problem and a finger injury. Being the only keeper selected for the T20 WC, this injury could have serious repercussions.
All in all, there is nothing positive (for cricket) coming out of the IPL circus. If anyone feels the IPL has introduced anything positive to the sport, I’d love to have a debate.
Showing posts with label IPL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IPL. Show all posts
Monday, May 4, 2009
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
How IPL will hit Test Cricket (Part 1 of 2)
Ace shooter and India’s 1st Olympic individual gold medalist, Ahbinav Bindra calls the IPL – “an over hyped cricket tournament”. I would call it, “the most over hyped circus ever - in a cricketing disguise”.
I hold the strong view that the IPL will cause damage to the real cricket - test cricket. In fact, it has already started to do so. Let me explain how…
1. Corporatisation of cricket
IPL is changing the way teams are oriented. From a tradition of national teams and national cricketing boards, IPL teams are owned by franchisees. This model has been adopted from football, where professional footballers are contracted to play for professional clubs. This is also the model followed by American leagues.
Many would argue that corporatisation will bring in more professionalism into cricket, and benefit the Indian economy as well. However, we must realize that unlike football or the American sports, cricket is a sport played in multiple formats.
We have the original test cricket for the purists and then the ODI and T20 formats for the fans who do not necessarily understand the intricacies of cricket, but follow it for the entertainment value. The shorter versions obviously attract a larger and younger viewer base, thus making them more attractive to corporate sponsors, i.e. they are more ‘marketable properties’.
Let’s not be under any illusion - Corporates are not interested in developing cricket; they just want to make money. If corporates had it their way, professional cricketers would be playing for 365 days a year. And of course, we will never see corporates line up to buy franchisees for a world test championship! Corporates do not want the slow boring form of test cricket; they want the bang-bang of 20-20.
2. IPL will overlap with international schedules
Over the years, we are seeing more and more international cricket being played. An international team plays around 80-100 days of cricket every year. These days, it is very rare for a team to not have any fixture for even a month at a stretch. The international cricket calendar was already jam-packed. And to top it off, we now have the IPL.
The IPL demands at least 5-6 weeks from international players. Obviously, for the first 2 seasons, many foreign players could not participate for the entire tournament; they had to return to national duties. But all national boards are not that financially strong to compel their players to give priority to representing their country over their franchise.
The Sri Lankan tour to England has been the first casualty. The board (shamefully) had to bow down to their players’ demands and opt out of the scheduled England tour. England had to then schedule a series with the West Indies, to salvage their home season.
This is the first instance where the IPL circus has hit the international cricket schedule. If IPL gets stronger, there will be even more instances of cricket tours getting cancelled. Needless to say, India will not have any cricket matches for the 6 weeks of IPL.
More on this in part 2...
I hold the strong view that the IPL will cause damage to the real cricket - test cricket. In fact, it has already started to do so. Let me explain how…
1. Corporatisation of cricket
IPL is changing the way teams are oriented. From a tradition of national teams and national cricketing boards, IPL teams are owned by franchisees. This model has been adopted from football, where professional footballers are contracted to play for professional clubs. This is also the model followed by American leagues.
Many would argue that corporatisation will bring in more professionalism into cricket, and benefit the Indian economy as well. However, we must realize that unlike football or the American sports, cricket is a sport played in multiple formats.
We have the original test cricket for the purists and then the ODI and T20 formats for the fans who do not necessarily understand the intricacies of cricket, but follow it for the entertainment value. The shorter versions obviously attract a larger and younger viewer base, thus making them more attractive to corporate sponsors, i.e. they are more ‘marketable properties’.
Let’s not be under any illusion - Corporates are not interested in developing cricket; they just want to make money. If corporates had it their way, professional cricketers would be playing for 365 days a year. And of course, we will never see corporates line up to buy franchisees for a world test championship! Corporates do not want the slow boring form of test cricket; they want the bang-bang of 20-20.
2. IPL will overlap with international schedules
Over the years, we are seeing more and more international cricket being played. An international team plays around 80-100 days of cricket every year. These days, it is very rare for a team to not have any fixture for even a month at a stretch. The international cricket calendar was already jam-packed. And to top it off, we now have the IPL.
The IPL demands at least 5-6 weeks from international players. Obviously, for the first 2 seasons, many foreign players could not participate for the entire tournament; they had to return to national duties. But all national boards are not that financially strong to compel their players to give priority to representing their country over their franchise.
The Sri Lankan tour to England has been the first casualty. The board (shamefully) had to bow down to their players’ demands and opt out of the scheduled England tour. England had to then schedule a series with the West Indies, to salvage their home season.
This is the first instance where the IPL circus has hit the international cricket schedule. If IPL gets stronger, there will be even more instances of cricket tours getting cancelled. Needless to say, India will not have any cricket matches for the 6 weeks of IPL.
More on this in part 2...
Monday, March 23, 2009
IPL now goes international
Two great stories emerged last weekend. One was India’s comprehensive victory in the Hamilton test, the first test win in New Zealand for 33 years. The second was of the IPL deciding to move out of India. But for all the history and joy associated with the test victory, the IPL story has created a much bigger stir in the cricketing world and the media.
The desperate situation that IPL finds itself in today makes me very very happy. Let me explain why…
The motive behind the IPL
IPL is not an event of national pride. It is not even a cricketing event. In fact, IPL is a business model that has promised big profits for all stakeholders - the BCCI, franchisees, sponsors, broadcasters, and the cricketers themselves. All stakeholders except the most important of them all – CRICKET.
If the development of cricket was among the priorities of BCCI, we would have seen much more interest and coverage for the domestic competitions – the Ranji, Irani, Duleep and Deodhar trophies. There could have been a domestic T20 competition on the lines of similar events in England, Australia, South Africa, etc. We could have some teams sign up international stars to add the glam quotient.
But all of that would not have satisfied the humungous appetites of the goons that run Indian cricket. They wanted to make it big, with corporate houses buying teams, cricketers being auctioned off like prostitutes or slaves in the olden days. So, the only motive behind this entertainment circus is money.
The Political connection
The biggest problem with world cricket today is its administration. It is not run by people who understand the game. Neither is it run by professionals with prior experience of sports management. The problem is especially damaging in India, where the people in charge are either corrupt politicians, or some rich influencers who can throw some money around to make lots more.
Any aspirant of a top BCCI position must have significant political affiliations. That was exactly the formula used by Lalit Modi. Unfortunately, BJP lost the Rajasthan state elections, and after that, Modi lost his clout in the Rajasthan Cricket Association. That made him weak in his home turf, and with the Congress at the helm in Parliament, he obviously cannot pull as many strings. Dirty, Dirty politics!
The Franchisee dilemma
Cricket is India’s #1 passion. The country stops when the national cricket team is on the field. So, it is not at all difficult to rope in the corporates who can use such a platform to reach out to Indian masses. That’s exactly what attracted big names like Mukesh Ambani and Vijay Mallya, and other (stupid) corporate houses to put in hundreds of millions of dollars into this ambitious project.
The model first ensured that BCCI would make profits. Most of the franchisees would take at least 3-4 years (of successful IPL) to break-even.
With so much at stake, the franchisees have no option but to support BCCI in whatever steps they take to ensure that IPL2 happens. It was not mere coincidence that we heard all team owners express full support to BCCI. And they do not have an exit route; nobody will invest (bet) in this circus given the economic downturn. Franchisees have to rake in whatever sponsorship they manage to get, and pray that somehow their losses this year are minimized.
Where now?
At this moment, the BCCI is considering 2 options to host the IPL – England and South Africa. These are the only 2 countries where cricket can be played in April and May, and the telecast can coincide with prime time in India. The boards are more than willing to accommodate the IPL on its grounds. And why not? Why should anyone mind the extra buck?
Common sense and knowledge of adverse weather conditions in England would suggest that South Africa should be the obvious choice. But there seems to be some powerful lobbying for the games to be held in England. The economics would tilt the decision in favour of England. Given the huge expat population, we can expect some good crowds for the matches. Some reports suggest that the Indian team management (Dhoni and co.) want the matches in England, so as to get some valuable practice before the T20 World Cup there.
I would like this to happen, and to see how many matches get washed (or even snowed) out. I wonder how many sponsors would be willing to stick around thru the chilly journey to England!
What lies ahead…
The next year (if IPL lasts that long) will be even more interesting. IPL plans to host matches in March – April to avoid a clash with the T20 World Cup in West Indies. It will then clash with the exam season. This will mean that the student/ youth segment (and their families) who make up the largest segment of audience (either in-ground or on TV) will give the matches a miss.
Lower audiences will mean lesser ticket revenues. Lower viewership will mean lesser sponsorship revenues. All this will translate into losses for the franchisees (the biggest losers in the whole circus). Ultimately the IPL will lose the pillars it stand on and hopefully, should fold up – the sooner the better.
Summarizing..
The IPL wants to change the face of international cricket. The goons promoting it want to take all romance out of our #1 passion and make cricket a business. They were cheeky enough to lay the blame of the IPL2 fiasco on the non-cooperation from the government and political reasons for the fiasco. So much for climbing the BCCI ladder using political affiliations themselves!
Indian Cricket is the ‘Goose that lays golden eggs’. BCCI, instead of nurturing the goose, wants to cut it open and have all the eggs at once. They want to fill their coffers and usurp all the power they can using this money. Now, it’s their karma hitting back. Hopefully, this should see a major change in cricket administration, and better days and years ahead!
The desperate situation that IPL finds itself in today makes me very very happy. Let me explain why…
The motive behind the IPL
IPL is not an event of national pride. It is not even a cricketing event. In fact, IPL is a business model that has promised big profits for all stakeholders - the BCCI, franchisees, sponsors, broadcasters, and the cricketers themselves. All stakeholders except the most important of them all – CRICKET.
If the development of cricket was among the priorities of BCCI, we would have seen much more interest and coverage for the domestic competitions – the Ranji, Irani, Duleep and Deodhar trophies. There could have been a domestic T20 competition on the lines of similar events in England, Australia, South Africa, etc. We could have some teams sign up international stars to add the glam quotient.
But all of that would not have satisfied the humungous appetites of the goons that run Indian cricket. They wanted to make it big, with corporate houses buying teams, cricketers being auctioned off like prostitutes or slaves in the olden days. So, the only motive behind this entertainment circus is money.
The Political connection
The biggest problem with world cricket today is its administration. It is not run by people who understand the game. Neither is it run by professionals with prior experience of sports management. The problem is especially damaging in India, where the people in charge are either corrupt politicians, or some rich influencers who can throw some money around to make lots more.
Any aspirant of a top BCCI position must have significant political affiliations. That was exactly the formula used by Lalit Modi. Unfortunately, BJP lost the Rajasthan state elections, and after that, Modi lost his clout in the Rajasthan Cricket Association. That made him weak in his home turf, and with the Congress at the helm in Parliament, he obviously cannot pull as many strings. Dirty, Dirty politics!
The Franchisee dilemma
Cricket is India’s #1 passion. The country stops when the national cricket team is on the field. So, it is not at all difficult to rope in the corporates who can use such a platform to reach out to Indian masses. That’s exactly what attracted big names like Mukesh Ambani and Vijay Mallya, and other (stupid) corporate houses to put in hundreds of millions of dollars into this ambitious project.
The model first ensured that BCCI would make profits. Most of the franchisees would take at least 3-4 years (of successful IPL) to break-even.
With so much at stake, the franchisees have no option but to support BCCI in whatever steps they take to ensure that IPL2 happens. It was not mere coincidence that we heard all team owners express full support to BCCI. And they do not have an exit route; nobody will invest (bet) in this circus given the economic downturn. Franchisees have to rake in whatever sponsorship they manage to get, and pray that somehow their losses this year are minimized.
Where now?
At this moment, the BCCI is considering 2 options to host the IPL – England and South Africa. These are the only 2 countries where cricket can be played in April and May, and the telecast can coincide with prime time in India. The boards are more than willing to accommodate the IPL on its grounds. And why not? Why should anyone mind the extra buck?
Common sense and knowledge of adverse weather conditions in England would suggest that South Africa should be the obvious choice. But there seems to be some powerful lobbying for the games to be held in England. The economics would tilt the decision in favour of England. Given the huge expat population, we can expect some good crowds for the matches. Some reports suggest that the Indian team management (Dhoni and co.) want the matches in England, so as to get some valuable practice before the T20 World Cup there.
I would like this to happen, and to see how many matches get washed (or even snowed) out. I wonder how many sponsors would be willing to stick around thru the chilly journey to England!
What lies ahead…
The next year (if IPL lasts that long) will be even more interesting. IPL plans to host matches in March – April to avoid a clash with the T20 World Cup in West Indies. It will then clash with the exam season. This will mean that the student/ youth segment (and their families) who make up the largest segment of audience (either in-ground or on TV) will give the matches a miss.
Lower audiences will mean lesser ticket revenues. Lower viewership will mean lesser sponsorship revenues. All this will translate into losses for the franchisees (the biggest losers in the whole circus). Ultimately the IPL will lose the pillars it stand on and hopefully, should fold up – the sooner the better.
Summarizing..
The IPL wants to change the face of international cricket. The goons promoting it want to take all romance out of our #1 passion and make cricket a business. They were cheeky enough to lay the blame of the IPL2 fiasco on the non-cooperation from the government and political reasons for the fiasco. So much for climbing the BCCI ladder using political affiliations themselves!
Indian Cricket is the ‘Goose that lays golden eggs’. BCCI, instead of nurturing the goose, wants to cut it open and have all the eggs at once. They want to fill their coffers and usurp all the power they can using this money. Now, it’s their karma hitting back. Hopefully, this should see a major change in cricket administration, and better days and years ahead!
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