The Highs and Lows of IPL

Its been 10 days since the 4th installment of the highly popular yet controversial IPL got underway. While there are a lot of cynics out there who claim that the IPL has everything but cricket, I beg to differ. The simple fact being, if it wasn't for cricket and the juicy T20 format, a concept like IPL would have never kicked off in the first place. While there is always a possibility of the side dishes overshadowing the flavors of the main course, it is impossible for anyone to savor only the sides and totally exclude the main course.

I have been wanting to write about this man for a long time. Hats off to Lalit Modi for the inception and execution of such a great idea. Frankly speaking, I was a bit doubtful about his ability to single handedly make it a success. But I developed great respect for Mr.Modi when he yet again single handedly shifted the IPL from India to South Africa under a month. Modi had his duly wise men to advise him but I guess a lot of other crabs in the BCCI couldn't stand him raising the bat with each edition of the IPL.

Of course there is a lot of commercialization and that is obviously expected as at the end of the day, its a business. Franchises have invested a lot of moolah and they intend to make profits out of it and if cricket is the way, then let be it. Lots of MNCs are doing the same with software professionals but nobody is complaining. Right!!! I'm a hardcore RCBian and I watch it only for the cricket and once in a way wouldn't mind seeing hot "talented"(yes, it takes a lot of hardwork and talent) girls shaking their booty but never the other way around. I honestly don't believe that anyone for that matter watches the IPL only for the cheerleaders. If people are so desperate to see some skin, I guess there are lots of other ways which yield more skin and bodily fluids per viewing minutes.

While the 3rd edition of IPL ended on a very controversial note, let us have a look whether there is any drastic improvement in the quality the event. For starters, the opening ceremony actually looked like one of those acts that you would probably have in your wedding. Hardly any known names or classy and memorable acts albeit SRK(who would have done it for free anyways). So there is something literally "cheap" about it. Moving on, Max has stuck to two dudes and an on field bimbo (cheap). The forte of studio guests include Sidhu, ArunLOL, Gavaskar (Jr) and Jayasuriya(pity). So there is the "cheap" factor once again. There are only 3 commentators per match(logistics and "cheap" factor). The TV channels are doing a wonderful job in not showing the empty stands and zooming in on handful of the artificially enthusiastic fans.

The BCCI actually did another "cheap" act by assuming that the WorldCup win would automatically fill up the stands and thus spent a meager amount on promoting the IPL. Not even once have I seen any of the team anthems or videos this time and I'm sure the hoardings and other outdoor advertising also has been limited. Chirayu Amin's dressing and attitude was like a humdinger for the quality of IPL. At the end of the day the only thing I can say is that Mr.Lalit Modi you are being missed dearly. We miss the class and style that you brought to the IPL. While I so want you to come back and take control, I know its not going to happen and I can only see the start of the IPL downfall.

P.S - Dear Vettori, please stop sending tailenders up the order as pinch hitters. Gone are those days during 1990s when Srinath was the trump card. Please get the batting order right. 

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Spot the fix contest

When cricket first started in the earlier part of the 1900s in England, it was one of the sports played with the sole intention of entertaining the royal family and especially the queen. I was listening to one of the talks by Harsha Bhogle where he mentioned that one such test match lasted for 14 days which ultimately ended in a draw. The only reason the match was stopped was because one of the teams had to board a ship back to their country and they couldn't afford to miss it as the next ship was almost a month later. The captain of this team was also heard saying that if they had got just 1 more day, they could have won the match.

Even though the 5 day test matches tested the players, the crowds needed something that was more entertaining and this gave birth to the ODIs which were initially played with 60 overs a side. When the world was trying to figure out a solution to the Y2K problem, some people saw a solution to their financial woes and to make some money through cricket. The cricketing fraternity was introduced to the term match fixing when one of the most respected cricketers of that time, Hansie Cronje confessed to succumbing to it. This incident not only exposed the true colors of some of our idols at that time, but also set the cat among the pigeons. I was impressed with the way the movie "99" was shot and it touches on topic mentioned.

With more and more people getting interested in spicy steamed up quickies, the pleasure of ODIs started to fade away and this gave birth to a high on energy and orgasmic format called as T20s. Lalit Modi and his merry men saw a way to combine this and Bollywood in order to make it even more glamorous and named it the IPL. After all, in India its only sex and SRK that sell (I feel that SRK here doesn't refer to Shiv Raj Kumar. Just cant imagine him on the street corners waiting to be picked up even though I can easily imagine the KKKKhan. I'm sure to have plucked some nerves here :P).  

Coming back to 2010, the world was exposed to the little known brother of match fixing i.e spot fixing. People figured out that match fixing not only leaves a lot of loose ends but also makes it look obvious. I recently read that the finals of the IPL this year too was fixed and the bookies stopped accepting bets for a Chennai win even when they were 4 wickets down before the 10th over with hardly a decent score on board. Sending Pollard down the order too makes  one speculate if it was true. I have been following the success of the rejuvenated England cricket team and this team looks like their best in a long time. Lord's has been a Mecca for cricket and it threatened to mask the purple patch of the England team towards the end of the summer. To be frank, even though Pakistan has produced some legends over the years, I have never been a fan of their team. The incessant appealing, numerous doping and match fixing controversies, the internal politics, the inability of the former cricketers turned commentators' to impress a point sitting in the commentary box and the blinding green color are some of the factors that have made me detest their cricketing spirit. Till recently, I had started to admire Mohammad Aamir's bowling and I really believed that a youngster of that age could really take Pakistan cricket to the next level. 

Even though I believe that the recent spot fixing scandal involving the Lord's test was just the tip of the ice berg and that it is wrong to assume that only Pakistan cricketers are corrupt, the fact is that they were caught red handed. The excuses used by them to get out of this mess will make even a kid who finds armpit farts funny to laugh at them. 

" I had kept the money to shop for my sister's wedding". 

"This is a set up". 

"The Indian bookies are to be blamed for this".

It really amuses me to see that they took almost 3 days to cook up such dumb excuses. If at all you wanted money to shop, why would you do it in the middle of a test match and why wouldn't you use something called as the ATM? How can you call it a set up when there is enough proof shown in the videos regarding every step leading to the fix? I have to commend Asif here as he made the no ball look like a genuine mistake and Aamir on the other hand showed his inexperience by bowling a foot long no ball. Guess the kid was too nervous about doing it or just wanted to be on a safer side. Asif not only looks like a seasoned fixing campaigner but looks like a man confident about getting away with it. I wouldn't deny that Indian bookies probably had a hand in all of this but its the bookie's job to feed you shit and it all depends whether you throw it out, or eat it, or put a cream topping on it and lick the plate inside out just the Pakistan trio did.

Just like Bob Woolmer's death during the world cup, I'm sure this controversy too is going to be brushed under the carpet. I'm really interested to know if there is any proof of fixing umpires which I believe is the safest and easiest thing to do. If any of you bookies are reading this, give me a call and lets discuss it in detail :). This raises doubts with the credibility of people running ICC and their inability to implement the Umpire Decision Review System(UDRS). Implementing that system will probably take the fixing of umpires out of the equation and probably the committee members will loose out on the cut they are getting out of all the fixing portfolios.

CLT20 started last week and I'm so glad not to hear any DLF maximums or Karbonn kamaal katches or Maxx mobile timeouts. It is understood that a lot of money is riding on these events but one has to draw a line when it comes to commercialization. If the same trend continues, we might even get to see the "spot the fix" contest in which contestants not only have to guess which ball might be a no ball but also the exact number of times Deepika Padukone and Siddarth Mallya are shown on the big screen with a "oops we got caught doing it" expression. The problem with anything related to management or administration in India is that people are like crabs in a box trying to pull each other down all the time, unable to stand the success of a colleague or a fellowman. It wouldn't be surprising to see the IPL fade out like fizz in a soda bottle as a result of too much of commercialization. With the ousting of Lalit Modi and a highly confusing format for the next IPL just to make every team play 14 matches, I feel biting the dust is imminent. The organizers of CLT20 have done a fabulous job on the number of advertisements and sponsors even though they have made a horrendous mistake in choosing commentators like Ganguly, Manjrekar and co. But guess one has to compromise on something and I hope at least this tournament runs without any glitches and I get to see RCB lifting the cup on 26th :). Jai RCB.

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