Uninterrupted by poll or pandemic, IPL an unavoidable annual sporting event

Uninterrupted by election or pandemic, the cash-rich tournament has become an unavoidable annual event

Last year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) final was staged at Ahmedabad’s gargantuan Narendra Modi Stadium on May 29. Precisely a week later, members of the Indian Test team were jettisoned from the country’s sweltering cauldron to the cooler climes of London to feature in the World Test Championship final against Australia.

In this age of cut-throat competition and professionalism, these cricketers are expected to make a seamless transition from one format to the other. It’s easier said than done.

The Indians, under the leadership of Rohit Sharma, imploded under the most dramatic circumstances. They would go down by 209 runs to hand Australia the coveted World Test Championship crown. It was the second time in succession that India would bow out in the summit clash of the premier long-form ICC tournament.

Instead of blaming his players for their insipid performance, Sharma questioned the scheduling of the World Test Championship final during the post-match press conference.

“Why after the IPL? Why not in March? June is not the only month to play in the (World Test Championship) final,” he argued.

Of the few certainties in life is the razzmatazz called the IPL. It has survived the scourge of the pandemic, and over the years, it has also dodged the frenzy of several Lok Sabha elections to cement a spot in the annual sporting calendar.

On Friday, the 17th edition of the IPL will kick-off with Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore facing off at the Chepauk Stadium in Chennai.

Over the years, the IPL has attained the status of a decacorn, witnessing a remarkable 28 per cent surge in its combined brand value to touch $10.7 billion, according to Brand Finance.

Such has been IPL’s sway that players are increasingly skipping international and domestic commitments just to feature in this cash-rich tournament.

In February this year, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) finally cracked the whip on Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan – the two rising stars of Indian cricket – for choosing “IPL over domestic cricket,” by excluding them from the list of central contracts.

But the malaise is deep-rooted. Blame it on the ill-conceived scheduling.

The ICC World T20, spread across the Caribbean islands and in the US, is scheduled to take place in June this year, just days after the final of this IPL.

Not surprisingly, this IPL assumes greater significance as a spectacular performance in this edition guarantees a player a sure-shot ticket to the showpiece ICC event.

Take the case of star India player KL Rahul.

Rahul is back at the helm after recovering from a quadriceps injury as the captain of the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).

At the IPL curtain-raiser press conference, Justin Langer, the tough-talking coach of LSG, was asked about his captain’s chances of making it to the Indian team.

“The message for players like KL will be that the more they concentrate on playing well for LSG, their chances (of World T20 call-up) will increase,” Langer said.

In many ways, the IPL is a grim indicator of the times we live in.

Former India captain Bishan Bedi had labelled IPL a “scam”, calling it a platform for money-laundering activities.

West Indies pace bowling legend Michael Holding has strong views on the IPL, saying, “It is not cricket.” He also asked the ICC to not turn the sport into a “soft-ball competition”.

Given the financial clout and the brand equity the IPL enjoys, this is a competition that is only going to burgeon in size and stature in the years ahead.