IPL Mania

IPL 6 is back with a bang. The opening ceremony was a disaster to say the least and did not live up to expectations, the hype it created, but with matches commencing IPL fever has taken over.  Various franchisees’ flaunting their team logos, banners and theme songs is a regular on TV now and with TRP ratings soaring high the sixth edition promises to enthrall the audience even better as compared to the earlier editions.

The scene in most of the Indian household’s is, they are planning their routine around IPL matches. When to travel, when to shop, go for a movie etc. happens when TV is sans the matches. Such is the popularity of this extravaganza.

I am sure the women folks in homes is not that happy, with males in the household taking control of the TV and turning into a couch potato. At the same time the popularity of IPL has infected the ladies as well and they too are soaking in and savoring the event, and this is evident from the presence of number of women in the stadiums and the tweets being sent by them.

IPL is synonymous now with entertainment, thrill, fun and much more, I would go ahead and coin a new English word which means everything I mentioned.

So far the matches have been exciting and a humdinger of sorts with people biting their nails off, roaring and supporting their franchisees whole heartedly. Even the owners who otherwise are ensconced in their royal seats are jumping with joy or waving their team flag whenever a four or six is hit or a wicket is taken by their team. No one has been spared by this pandemic named IPL.

It’s a wonderful site to see young, old, girl, boy doing an impromptu “jhumping zhapak” at any given instance. The comperes, the cheer girls, commentators, experts etc.  are not to be left behind. All in all it’s a huge jamboree and no one is complaining. IPL is one magnum opus which has everything one can expect, be it humor, tragedy, romance, drama, action, fun, thrill…..

Children in school when asked about favorite season, quick comes the reply, IPL season, this is IPL for you. No program on TV, other than IPL, has garnered so much viewership, in recent times.

As they say “Time is a Healer” I would go ahead one step and say cricket and in particular IPL is a great healer a leveler. Players from different countries who otherwise were hurling abuses, fighting on and off the field with each other are now playing for the same team, enjoying it and supporting each other like blood brothers. The bonhomie is worth noticing. IPL has given them a chance to say let bygones be bygones.

Other important aspect of IPL is the platform it has given to budding cricketers from India, to show case their talent and get noticed by the BCCI mandarins. This might very well open the doors for them and give them a chance of lifetime to represent the country in future. Besides, IPL has proved to be a boon for young Indian cricketers for they get a chance to mingle and play with their idols from India and abroad. This can be a huge learning experience for these young guns, and in due course might metamorphose them from raw talent to mature cricketers to reckon.

IPL has brought in huge money and has opened up career options for fringe players, not to forget the biggies in the game who are laughing all the way to the bank. Budding commentators, comperes and many more have got a great platform and an opportunity to get noticed for various other roles like modeling, movies etc. all in all a life changer for many.

Cricketers from various countries want to associate themselves with IPL, for it augments their resume and can bring in more opportunities. It has resurrected careers of many cricketers who were on the downside and neglected by their boards. Looking at the skills demoed during the matches, no one would dare call IPL the “Tamasha Cricket”. It has gained huge amount of respect from legends across the cricket playing nations, though there are some purists who rate it nonsense cricket wherein cricketing brains are to be kept home. These differences of opinions are bound to happen; but no one can deny the euphoria IPL generates.

One thing that baffles me though is the bevy of support staff. Sr. Mentor, Jr. Mentor, head coach, mental conditioning coach, fielding coach and the list is endless. Are they really required for a 20 over game? Or this need is created to fit in long list of foreign staff? As an Indian and it being an Indian Premier League I would expect most of the support staff to be Indian, for they will get good exposure in handling the team comprising of players from various cultures, background. This would groom them to take on bigger responsibilities in future, but I guess we are still reeling under the influence of foreign fixation and that’s something the wise men in BCCI have to think.

As a cricket aficionado I am enjoying every bit of this cricket carnival. I am sure every cricket loving Indian would echo same sentiments as mine. The party has just started and will continue for another month. Let’s enjoy the Jhumping zhapak, Siddhu’s sidhuism, Sunil gavaskars’s singing, and much more.

Long Live IPL

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