Sport mirrors society, IPL even more so. When a business model for sport brought in the elements that were to do more with money making than true success in terms of spreading the game’s popularity, it became a monster that threatened to eat up the sport. This is where cricket suffered the most. The IPL was a good format for the players’ financial security and rewards for the stars of American pro sport proportions.
The IPL became bad because big business with its callous disregard for ethicality took over. The dancing girls are not to be blamed for the mess the league found itself in after a scam of Himalayan heights surfaced in which all kinds of conflicts of interest were allowed free play. Pom-pom girls were first seen in New Zealand nearly 25 years ago. By making them a compulsory part of the pro sport exercise and allowing them a free run at sporting celeb was what created a problem out of an elegant promotional exercise.
The dancing girls had nothing to do with persons sitting in the dugout who was indulging in betting nor did they influence the Indian captain to place himself in a potentially embarrassing situation by buying shares in his management company. But to clean up the sport — an exercise that must begin with the Champions League in a few months’ time at home — the pom-poms must disappear from the scene too. The question is will big business that has taken over the leagues allow a thorough cleansing operation that will leave just the cricket as the attraction.
There are societies in which these hyped-up promotions seem to work well. At least they don’t seem to create waves. The Australians have been innovators in hyping up cricket since the Packer revolution of 1977. Their Big Bash sells well enough without the business or the game going hyper about it. The same formula in a different social milieu seems to touch too many raw nerves. This is probably the key. What an Indian league needs is an understated elegance in which the cricket is placed above everything else.
The moment the cricketers went away from the cloying atmosphere brought about by the incestuous nature of the IPL to the balmy air of a British summer the honesty in their cricket became obvious. The game is not only about winning and losing but also about how sincerely cricketers try. What we saw in the warm-up games before the Champions Trophy was a refreshing change in attitude of Team India players. The same guys who were more than willing to throw away their wickets despite being paid in millions were down to displaying their true worth on the field.
As the numero uno of the 50-overs game in which they are also the World Cup champions, Team India players had to just free their minds of the terrible problems of the IPL to shine.
And suddenly a chase of a 300-plus total and an attacking defence of a 300-plus target became possible. Of course, we have to thank the obvious talents of the likes of Virat Kohli, Dhoni and a rejuvenated Umesh Yadav for it. Each of them is a match winner in his own right. But surpassing them all in consistency was Dinesh Karthik with a remodelled batting technique.
Once India’s first wicket-keeper and batsmen, he lost his way and his place in Team India only to regain it sporadicallyand lose it again. It was his IPL form that helped tell the selectors that here was a batsman who has learnt how to stroke the ball far more than trying to strike it with a mighty wallop. The art of batting is all in the balance of the body and stillness of the head, which virtues Karthik has rediscovered. His centuries on the trot offer the promise that a valuable and experienced addition has been found to bolster a middle order that needs a sober anchor amidst the big hitters.
A good British summer – the action begins in Wales today for India — warming Indian backs and baking the pitches dry and somewhat two-paced would mean the conditions are ideal for India’s ODI cricket to flourish. The odds would still be stacked if the white Duke ball starts wobbling more than in the warm-ups. Considering the turmoil at home, it would be a great time to win a trophy that would stand testimony to the essential honesty of our star players. With the IPL albatross temporarily off their back, they are free to go out and beat the world.