Circa 2008:
Eleven years ago, the eighteenth day of April 2008, was a
historic day.
For, it was a day that changed the course of not just Indian
cricket but the entire landscape of world cricket forever.
Indeed, this was the day when the Indian Premier League was
born. Along with the birth of millions of new dreams. Many new careers. Many
new teammates and alliances. Many new mindsets.
From a rich cricketing economy to the undisputed financial
behemoth that BCCI became thanks to the IPL, there are many reasons to love the
event for making cricket a sporting extravaganza par excellence, rich with talent,
non-stop action, slam-bang thrills, riveting finishes, and all this in the
midst of having the best of national and domestic cricketers rubbing shoulders
with the marquee cricketing giants from all across the globe.
Surely, like with anything else in the world, the IPL too
has had its flaws but then, as we all know, a to expect anything to be perfect
or flaw-free is to expect a bug-free software or a corruption-less, pollution-less
world.
Despite all its naysayers, the IPL remains and despite
almost every other country which can afford to host such events and replicate
the IPL model, the original Indian version is likely to remain entrenched as the
best and most attractive T20 league in the world, by far.
Without any doubt, the IPL has done more good than bad. By
giving a platform to the otherwise-untested domestic talent in the country (who
could’ve hoped for international exposure only by donning an India/India ‘A’ jersey),
it has added muscle to the confidence of every aspiring cricketer to see, learn
and absorb everything from the marquee superstars, learn from them, and get
inspired to be the best in the business.
All in front of packed houses and the world’s best. If you
can be a star in the IPL, you can be much more sure of yourself that you can face
anyone, anywhere and come up trumps, because you have done it earlier, with the
best, against the best.
Oh, and did I mention the financial security you now have as
a budding cricketer? The uncertainties of living the life of a less-than-‘India-cap’
cricketer are well and truly over. If you have the game and talent to be a star
in T20s at that level, all you need is to be spotted. Once ‘bought’/ ’sold’ and
your form & fitness permitting, you can bid any of your financial restiveness
goodbye forever.
In fact, on the contrary, as a budding cricketer, your
performances are always likely to get more visibility for your performances
even more.
Happy Anniversary then, dear IPL!!
May you live long, may you live well, and may the tribe of emerging cricketers
(with skills across all 3 domains, Test cricket being the highest) only grow
with each edition.
