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Is IPL merely a commercial spectacle?
Made Popular Apr 23 2008
# The ongoing Indian Premier League cricket tournament is a heady cocktail of sports and commerce on a level that has never been attempted in the game before.
# Youngsters are getting a chance to play with international players and learn from them and sharing the same dressing room teaches a lot to inexperienced players.
# IPL won’t boost domestic cricket. The players - and not necessarily cricket - will benefit most from the tournament. It is more like a business and entertainment venture.
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Glenn
Apr 23 2008
Perth,
Australia
First ICL and then IPL, such tournaments and the new and the shortest form of cricket are actually damaging the game, the art of playing cricket. I don't think we can call it cricket where there is no need to show your technique because batsmen anyhow need runs. Indian cricket board is responsible for the death of cricket as an art and the commercialization of the game.
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(Global Perspectives)
IPL is good for state level cricketers to earn money but it is good for India only. Every cricketers from other countries can't get chance to play in IPL because IPL would give preference to Indian players. I know I won't get chance to play in IPL even when I can bat better than most of the Indian batsmen playing in state level tournaments.
(Global Perspectives)
It can be a successful business model only when the class cricketers accept invitation to play in IPL matches but I don't think they would give a miss to their international matches just to play in IPL. IPL is definitely a god idea for BCCI to make easy and quick money. The first season is good but it is difficult to see how long and how far it would go.
(Global Perspectives)
After all it is the brainchild of Subhash Chandra and the BCCI hijacked the whole concept and mix it with the power of money coming from Industries and Bollywood. The million dollar question is that which is important loyalty or money? Everybody is making money who cares which team is winning or losing. World's best captain Ricky Ponting is playing under India's one of the best captain Saurav Ganguly. This is the power of money....
(Local Perspectives)
Indian cricketers are making good money and cricketers from other cricket playing nations, who have proved their worth in international cricket, are being humiliated by the BCCI. Sreesanth is making 2 crores, Robin Uthappa is getting more than Ricky Ponting and Mathew Hayden earning together. IPL good for Indians not for others.
(Global Perspectives)
To hell with the IPL matches. I strongly criticize the concept of Twenty-20 matches. People in India are investing Rs 6 crores in MS Dhoni when farmers are committing suicides due to poverty. The T-20 form of game will eliminate the technical expertise of the players. Hit 5 sixes in 5 balls and you are the hero for next one year.
(Local Perspectives)
Indian Premier League, IPL, means luxurious life and quick money in just six weeks of time. Earning money in the shortest possible time is not possible in any other form of game. Only T-20 can give you millions of dollars in quick time. It is happening because still it is the game of 'gentleman'.
(Local Perspectives)
I would love to go and watch the T-20 games because I love to see the dancing chicks in the playground. I am ready to buy ticket by spending 10 times of the actual rate of the ticket if the Indian superstar Shahrukh Khan and actor Preity Zinta present a dance show in the ground right at the side of the pitch.
(Global Perspectives)
Obviously, yes! IPL is nothing but a commercial venture conceptualized and ultimately realized by certain intelligent people (read high-profile Indian business personalities and celebrities) who know that to make good bucks in India, there’s no other easy way than to disguise your venture under the hood of Cricket!
Cricket enjoys a Holy status in India, and an average Indian is ready to fool himself into thinking that he is watching good cricket, whereas in reality he is doing nothing but helping these tycoons to dump some easy money into their safes!
As far as Cricket as a Game is concerned, these mini-version will degrade the game and ultimately ruin the charm out of cricket.
Anyway, I’m not a die-hard fan of cricket.. so, for me it carries no weightage whether its the cricket fans who are fooling themselves or whether its the intelligent marketing strategy of those bigwigs thats killing the real spirit of cricket.
As an afterthought, the IPL has definitely helped those money-hungry cricketers who grab every chance to bunk their training session to model for different brands- obviously, they too are humans... and they need money too. Now, IPL has given them an official reason to do so. So what if their game suffers, as long as the foolish fans are there, they have the privilege of hitting a century or taking a couple of wickets once in a bluemoon and stay out-of-form for the rest of their careers... and of course, enjoy a demi-god status!
So, at the end of it all... no one actually loses here.
Cricket enjoys a Holy status in India, and an average Indian is ready to fool himself into thinking that he is watching good cricket, whereas in reality he is doing nothing but helping these tycoons to dump some easy money into their safes!
As far as Cricket as a Game is concerned, these mini-version will degrade the game and ultimately ruin the charm out of cricket.
Anyway, I’m not a die-hard fan of cricket.. so, for me it carries no weightage whether its the cricket fans who are fooling themselves or whether its the intelligent marketing strategy of those bigwigs thats killing the real spirit of cricket.
As an afterthought, the IPL has definitely helped those money-hungry cricketers who grab every chance to bunk their training session to model for different brands- obviously, they too are humans... and they need money too. Now, IPL has given them an official reason to do so. So what if their game suffers, as long as the foolish fans are there, they have the privilege of hitting a century or taking a couple of wickets once in a bluemoon and stay out-of-form for the rest of their careers... and of course, enjoy a demi-god status!
So, at the end of it all... no one actually loses here.
(Local Perspectives)
yeah, IPL is all about making money and Indians can kill the game spirit for the sake of money. People have lots of time to watch cricket matches in India and Indian companies know it better so they are investing money in IPL to enough bucks. This is the show of power and money not cricket.
(Global Perspectives)
you are all bunch of radical hypocrites on the other side. i fail to understand why every time cricket has gone the popular way, there have been objections from purists.
we call cricket religion in India and you know how deeply we get attached to our religion. how many guys out there play cricket on the streets and how many of them has always played it on the streets only before calling for retirement unless you belong to the Indian ”elite class”
the answer is in millions. and now we see a revolution that’s putting the game and fame at the doorsteps of every young chap who plays cricket.
i won’t mind seeing all the superstars from cricketing world and bollywood coming out and making my evening a memorable experience with their presence on the stands.
and all the yelling about American cheerleaders simply shows what happens when the sex starved Indian society sees a lil’ extra flesh poping outta girl’s mini skirts.
it such a sad story that this revolution is not made for the country where everyone likes to be called Sachin Tendulkar.
we call cricket religion in India and you know how deeply we get attached to our religion. how many guys out there play cricket on the streets and how many of them has always played it on the streets only before calling for retirement unless you belong to the Indian ”elite class”
the answer is in millions. and now we see a revolution that’s putting the game and fame at the doorsteps of every young chap who plays cricket.
i won’t mind seeing all the superstars from cricketing world and bollywood coming out and making my evening a memorable experience with their presence on the stands.
and all the yelling about American cheerleaders simply shows what happens when the sex starved Indian society sees a lil’ extra flesh poping outta girl’s mini skirts.
it such a sad story that this revolution is not made for the country where everyone likes to be called Sachin Tendulkar.
(Local Perspectives)
What if India never won the inaugural twenty-20 world cup, would the BCCI still have a IPL played in India. Perhaps, ICL (the lesser league of the same format) could have received a cricket control board’s recognition. IPL is a mere orphan of the EPL, and is only hype with no real outcome - than, money, money, money...
(Local Perspectives)
I completely agree with Rakesh from the ’other side’ (read non-elite and non-radical side).
Obviously, if IPL has so much to offer (everything except real cricket!), why should there be a hullabaloo over this thing?
If IPL is doing its bit to serve the Indians its own version of celebrity hip-hop coupled with an eye-popping show from home-grown breed of flesh-popping girls, it should receive a positive response!
For real sports, there’s always football or some other game.
Cricket has gone to the entertainers, let it entertain those who are unable to differentiate between glamorization of sports and commercialization of sports.
Obviously, if IPL has so much to offer (everything except real cricket!), why should there be a hullabaloo over this thing?
If IPL is doing its bit to serve the Indians its own version of celebrity hip-hop coupled with an eye-popping show from home-grown breed of flesh-popping girls, it should receive a positive response!
For real sports, there’s always football or some other game.
Cricket has gone to the entertainers, let it entertain those who are unable to differentiate between glamorization of sports and commercialization of sports.
(Local Perspectives)
IPL is the first big Indian foray into ”sports entertainment”. And to be brutally frank, i’m getting bored with cricket now, simply because there is a cricket overkill right now. With the ICL, IPL and even other cricket boards planning such formats, fans like me will soon get disillusioned with this gilli-dand format.
(Local Perspectives)
I don’t see any problem with Cricket going commercial and with the shorter version of 20 overs...i am a regular viewer of the game now. obviously the 50 over game has so much to offer those who like to watch the technicalities and are Madan lals and shirikants of their own mohallas...but frankly speaking that game makes me feel cheated in the end. Sachin got out of the first ball, ganguly in the 5th over, yuvraj singh run out and then came Dhoni. Now sit back for the next 30 or so overs and watch the technicalities with Dhoni smashing a yorker for a 6 and of course there are a lot more to follow after Dhoni...(the technically sound ones)
i fail the understand why football can and cricket can’t be the real sports with all the glamorization and commercialization.
i fail the understand why football can and cricket can’t be the real sports with all the glamorization and commercialization.
(Local Perspectives)
Nothing wrong in being a commercial spectacle if it serves the purpose of being a crowd puller..
(Local Perspectives)
the chaos and the spotlight this format has got is actually because of the money involved in it.the things like ”cheerleaders”,”comercialisation” etc are all to add spice .THEY WILL NOT IN ANY WAY SPOIL THE REPUTATION FOR THE GAME.
the test match cricket will still be loved as it was earlier. it will never loose its fan following
the test match cricket will still be loved as it was earlier. it will never loose its fan following
(Local Perspectives)