IPL Inbox

With IPL 2012 out of the way, we can throw out the big talk about the big league for another year. For another year, international cricket will be central to the global cricketing scene. While it lasted, this IPL, in my, and many others’, opinion, was the best one of them all. As one of the columns on ESPNcricinfo very correctly pointed out, this IPL was a true success because of its high cricketing quality – of course, it also had the other stuff, but cricket was the key show-stealer.

For each of the three main skills in cricket, there was high quality stuff: Chris Gayle’s dominance, Narine and Murali’s magic off the wicket, and Steyn and Morkel’s venom. All that said, IPL 2013 can be better in various ways. After all, the league is only five seasons old and will get more refined as the seasons go by.

It is virtually impossible being an Indian and not understanding cricket – it is simply something everybody does. However – and I run the risk of ridicule here - I cannot sit through or even seriously follow a Test match. Twenty20 cricket is the only form of cricket I have ever watched, apart from a few [ODI] World Cup finals and semis, and I know that disregarding Test matches makes me a philistine or worse, but I couldn't care less!

When I try explaining cricket to someone from a non-cricketing European nation, only T20 cricket seems to interest them. And I perfectly understand their boredom with even the one-day game. I mean, one needs to pay attention to be involved in a match. When play goes on for more than half a day, where is the thrill?

Take a look at the world around us. On reflection, you will find that it is a highly commercialised environment in which each individual is a business entity. Every opportunity is exploited and marketed to the fullest potential. Any space is marketing space, pushing into our subconscious the need to be branded. We are products of this system and we propagate this system, pushing the boundaries in the hope of finding happiness in wealth.

In such times, it is foolhardy to expect sport to remain aloof and pure. After all, sport is a reflection of the society. Cricket is no different, it has (and is still) going commercial in a bid to survive.

A Saturday evening game, ambient weather, a hyped match-up (Dada vs KKR) is what Pune Warriors v Kolkata Knight Riders had to offer, come game No. 70 of the IPL. But as things turned out, the match was merely for academic interest as the result wouldn’t have affected the standing of either side. Eight consecutive losses isn’t the proposition you want as you venture out to support your home team.

Yet there were 45000 seats that were occupied at the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium; an indicator that team form and results are invariant of crowd support at ‘smaller’ venues. Pune doesn’t have an identity on the cricket globe as of now – there is no big player from the city who has represented India for a long time nor does it have any national academy or a famous cricket centre. But what it surely has are hordes of ‘live-action-hungry’ people.

Even before Mukul Kesavan wrote his piece damning the IPL in the Times of India, I knew of everything that was wrong with it: the conflict of interest issues, the chaotic rule changing, the inclination to turn a blind eye to some teams’ excesses, auctions gone awry and the shameless pandering to an entertainment-crazy country, often at the cost of cricket.

"This is not cricket", I would tell myself and tune in to watch hours of uninterrupted ‘not-cricket’. Later, I would simulate results and future points tables in my head and tease out possible scenarios, mentally salivating over clashes I couldn’t care less about. Still later, I would sit on ESPNcricinfo, go over the match report, the scorecard, click arbitrarily on players’ names and scrutinise their profile pages. My eyes would run down the ‘Recent Matches’ column and I would calculate batting and bowling averages in my head. The next morning, over breakfast, someone would mention the thrilling last-over finish of the previous night. I would shrug my shoulders nonchalantly and say: “Whatever”, and then add in the same don’t-give-a-damn tone, “The winning team’s net run rate has moved into the positive for the first time in five matches.” I couldn’t care less.

As an Englishman my initial reaction is to lambast the IPL for making a mockery of the sport played by such esteemed gentlemen as Denis Compton and Jack Hobbs. Yet the more I watch it (in place of studying, I might add), the more necessary it seems to the international game. It is beneficial for all the players who can hone their games against the best the world has to offer. The subcontinent and coloured kit cricket are two of England's perpetual minefields. Yet the overwhelming reaction from many "purists" is that the IPL is a voracious beast that seeks to consume Test cricket. By vociferously voicing complaints about the IPL these pundits and journalists aren't helping anything. The IPL won't be stopped just because The Times runs a piece on how wearing many advertising logos on a shirt will end the art of five-day matches. All this does is sour relations and narrows the doorway for English players trying to pass through into a highly competitive league that will doubtlessly ensure a more well-rounded game for the very players that represent England in all formats. The IPL isn't a ghastly conspiracy against Test cricket and should not be painted as such, just as county cricket isn't the only competition that can improve players. Both are needed to produce complete players and the sooner the cricketing puritans realise this, the better.

The team of the IPL is Rajasthan Royals for me. Or the double Rs as Danny Morrison calls them. Very aptly, it is the double-R show – Rahul [Dravid] and [Ajinkya] Rahane, that tops the reasons that make this team so likeable. In a format where you expect only thunderous batting, these two have showed the beautiful way. There might have been a few desperate slogs in between, but it has been mostly proper cricketing shots from them. In a format where you largely expect only sixes, these two have maintained high run-rates with fours. It is staggering that these two together have hit 116 fours between them in the 13 games they’ve played so far. Very understandably, Royals are the only team that have had an unchanged opening pair in the tournament. Remember, both of them made their international Twenty20 debut in the same game [v England in 2011) and shared a 65-run partnership. Rahane couldn't have chosen a better partner, mentor and guide. It is too early and I don't want to get carried away with Rahane. But this future India No. 3 is in very safe hands.

Now, what else makes Royals a team to watch? While a lot of teams with good sprinkling of big names have underperformed, the majority of Royals’ unheralded players have put their best foot forward. No team has beaten them easily, and they have shown tremendous fight. And tactically, they have been very good. They have trusted their players, stuck with them and given them reasonable chances without any constant chopping and changing. Dravid and the management have shown tremendous faith in good Ranji performers like Ashok Menaria, Ankeet Chavan, Pankaj Singh and Stuart Binny. And it has been a joy to see a visibly-relaxed Dravid lead the team. Barring few mistakes (he made a couple of bad decisions at the toss and bowled the left-arm spinner to left-handed batsmen quite often) Dravid has led admirably, and more importantly led from the front.

This year the IPL has showcased nine captains, and some stand-in leaders, of vastly contrasting fortunes. Being a good leader essentially means being able to make decisions and then enthuse your team to implement them. It involves clarity in thinking and focus on the task at hand, an ability to anticipate problems, delegate duties effectively and communicate well. It can also mean motivating others and taking a hands-on role in difficult situations.

After a tough exclusion process, we arrive at these four captains, stand-outs who have excelled in the art of captaincy so far in this IPL. Gautam Gambhir has emerged with gladiator like valour for Kolkata Knight Riders. He has led from the front, with five half-centuries and aggressive captaincy. Maturing as a leader, his days as a full time India captain might not be far off.

The IPL, through its sheer longevity, throws up a large database of information for statisticians to work with, and for fans to spot trends. Here is one such observation. This season, the home-away format returned to the IPL after a blip last year.

The format endeavours to the dilute the advantage of playing conditions, and it has meant that this season we have now had a couple of teams playing each other twice in a space of a few of days. The thought process advocating this schedule suggests that rivalry and the sense of ‘revenge’ are tools that supersede the threats of boredom and repetition.

As the IPL goes into its second half, a half that promises to be more intriguing than the first, there are plenty of reasons to watch the league. Firstly, the table is as crowded as a Mumbai local, with most of the teams jumping from top to middle and vice versa in the space of an evening or two. And then there are the good ol' warhorses, sprinkled across the franchises.

Two of them, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly, have shown signs of their ability to play match-winning hands, although they are yet to finish off games. Another, Adam Gilchrist, is yet to make an impact, and if and when he does, many would agree this could be our last chance to glimpse his genius. This IPL could very well be the last time we are watching these greats in a competitive tournament.