Indian Premier League: Look Back in Wonder
The Twenty20 (T20) format of cricket made its debut in England in the 2005-06 season. From the very beginning it was able to create much excitement among the people the people. But remember, it was not only the people of England but the people worldwide. The spectatorship rose high to such an extent that Sky Sports, the official broadcaster of the UK Domestic T20, gained a healthy amount of Television Rating Points (TRP). As a consequence, if you ask a cricket-loving Indian that who won the UK Domestic T20 last year, they will easily answer, “Middlesex” at once.
The sub-continent was undoubtedly the capital of cricket-commerce in the world from the ’90s. but the start here was very much unofficial through the arrival of the ‘rebel’ Indian Cricket League (ICL), inaugurated by Subhas Chandra of Zee group and legendary Indian cricketer Kapil Dev. Soon after the introduction of the ICL the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shook its locks and took the necessary steps to introduce Indian Premier League (IPL) which took the cricketing world through a complete jerk.
In its inaugural season in 2008 IPL became the heart-throb of the cricket-fanatics due to the presence of ace players like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Saurav Ganguly, Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden etc. eight teams participated from different parts of the country, namely, Delhi Daredevils, Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Royal Challengers Bangalore, King’s XI Punjab, Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) and Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad). Each team contained some foreign players, national players, local players and junior cricketers. In a very tough competition Rajasthan Royals, captained and coached by Aussie leg-spinning wizard Shane Warne, lifted the trophy in the first season of the IPL.
After its swashbuckling success in its inaugural edition, much was expected from the 2009 version. The dates were declared earlier but those dates clashed with the dates of the General Elections of India in some cases. Moreover, the security of the players was also under threat after the 26/11 incident of Mumbai. Left with no other alternative, the IPL Committee decided to hold the Tournament in South Africa.
There was a myth that T20 format of cricket is suitable for only those who can hit the ball hard. But the Protean soil proved it wrong, batting on the South African strips were much tougher than that on the Indian pitches. A bunch of young players like Yousuf Pathan, Swapnil Asnodkar did shine emphatically in the 2008 edition. But most of them failed miserably in the 2009 version. The players having strong base of batting grammar, like Sachin Tendulkar, Matthew Hayden excelled in style. Besides, the condition was favouring the bowlers on many occasions. The poor performance of the Kolkata Knight Riders apparently shrunk the number of actual competitors, but the other teams put their best effort to provide the tournament an exciting shape. Ultimately, the Deccan Chargers emerged as the Champions beating the Royal Challengers Bangalore in a nail-biting finish. It is to be remembered that the Deccan Chargers finished at the last position in the 2008 IPL.
Cricket is still a drama…even in the Twenty-first century.
The Twenty20 (T20) format of cricket made its debut in England in the 2005-06 season. From the very beginning it was able to create much excitement among the people the people. But remember, it was not only the people of England but the people worldwide. The spectatorship rose high to such an extent that Sky Sports, the official broadcaster of the UK Domestic T20, gained a healthy amount of Television Rating Points (TRP). As a consequence, if you ask a cricket-loving Indian that who won the UK Domestic T20 last year, they will easily answer, “Middlesex” at once.
The sub-continent was undoubtedly the capital of cricket-commerce in the world from the ’90s. but the start here was very much unofficial through the arrival of the ‘rebel’ Indian Cricket League (ICL), inaugurated by Subhas Chandra of Zee group and legendary Indian cricketer Kapil Dev. Soon after the introduction of the ICL the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shook its locks and took the necessary steps to introduce Indian Premier League (IPL) which took the cricketing world through a complete jerk.
In its inaugural season in 2008 IPL became the heart-throb of the cricket-fanatics due to the presence of ace players like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Saurav Ganguly, Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden etc. eight teams participated from different parts of the country, namely, Delhi Daredevils, Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Royal Challengers Bangalore, King’s XI Punjab, Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) and Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad). Each team contained some foreign players, national players, local players and junior cricketers. In a very tough competition Rajasthan Royals, captained and coached by Aussie leg-spinning wizard Shane Warne, lifted the trophy in the first season of the IPL.
After its swashbuckling success in its inaugural edition, much was expected from the 2009 version. The dates were declared earlier but those dates clashed with the dates of the General Elections of India in some cases. Moreover, the security of the players was also under threat after the 26/11 incident of Mumbai. Left with no other alternative, the IPL Committee decided to hold the Tournament in South Africa.
There was a myth that T20 format of cricket is suitable for only those who can hit the ball hard. But the Protean soil proved it wrong, batting on the South African strips were much tougher than that on the Indian pitches. A bunch of young players like Yousuf Pathan, Swapnil Asnodkar did shine emphatically in the 2008 edition. But most of them failed miserably in the 2009 version. The players having strong base of batting grammar, like Sachin Tendulkar, Matthew Hayden excelled in style. Besides, the condition was favouring the bowlers on many occasions. The poor performance of the Kolkata Knight Riders apparently shrunk the number of actual competitors, but the other teams put their best effort to provide the tournament an exciting shape. Ultimately, the Deccan Chargers emerged as the Champions beating the Royal Challengers Bangalore in a nail-biting finish. It is to be remembered that the Deccan Chargers finished at the last position in the 2008 IPL.
Cricket is still a drama…even in the Twenty-first century.
