Booming without hurdles

Hardcore cricket lovers are usually obsessed with scoreboards and statistics. In an era where one does not have to keep newspaper clippings pasted in an old scrapbook for reference, the age of internet and digitisation has changed many things.

Today, the fan can access scores and records of almost any match at the click of a button. That, perhaps, is one of the big reasons why the Indian Premier League (IPL) broadcast rights auction made big news last week.

Just imagine, the current T20 series between India and South Africa is on, at home. Yet, the debate was over who would win TV rights for the IPL in the next four-year cycle, from 2023 to 2027.

The guessing games were on for long. And the way bids were scrutinised reflected professionalism, which is what the IPL is about. When the latest season of the IPL concluded and Gujarat Titans emerged as champions under the captaincy of Hardik Pandya, one thought IPL news would be forgotten, till 2023.

No, the IPL, even in absence, continued to make news, as speculation on how much the rights would go for was discussed as much as the way stocks were debated after being hammered at the bourses. That the Sensex and Nifty are crashing and IPL figures are rising is mind-boggling.

Heck, how's that possible? When even the blue-chip stocks were caught in the bear run, how could the IPL media right, involving megabucks, soar. The IPL had been termed a billion-dollar baby long ago by a prominent news magazine. Today, the numbers are increasing crazily and zeroes are being added to lucrative deals.

Defies logic? Not really. Contrary to perception, when people said the IPL viewership was dropping, or dipping, this season, the elite T20 cricket masala was being consumed on other platforms. Just as you don't wait for the scorecards to be read in detail the next morning in newspapers, the way big bosses handled the media rights was mind-boggling.

Today, at an aggregate of Rs 48,390 crores (USD 6.2 billion) for broadcast television and digital streaming rights, the IPL is now much more valuable as a sports franchise than the much-hyped and watched EPL (English Premier League) or the National Basketball Association (NBA) championship. The auction of rights has taken people by storm not just in India but also abroad. It shows, the IPL is recession-proof and the "dil maange more" is not an exaggeration.

For the common man, what is of interest from the next season is he or she will see the IPL matches on Disney Star, when at home on television. The big, smart move is how digital rights were sold separately to Mukesh Ambani's Viacom 18. Today, it is not necessary that you have to sit in your drawing room or bed room to watch the IPL.

The content is being consumed much more through OTT (Over the Top). It means, the number of people watching IPL matches on cell phones, tablets, laptops, iPad and other similar gadgets is growing crazily. Almost everyone on social media went ballistic over the broadcast rights, where for two days the guessing games continued.

Those who run the IPL are very smart. The king, which is the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India), knows how to make money from anything and everything. Even though the IPL is a separate entity, professionals managing the IPL have learnt how the property can be milked to maximum.

To be sure, when the birth of T20 cricket took place in India, it was no IPL but ICL (Indian Cricket League), then promoted by Kapil Dev. The Indian Cricket League lasted just one season. The BCCI latched on to the concept and the birth of the IPL was pretty quick. Today, sitting in London, Lalit Modi is tweeting about what he did in the formative years of the IPL.

Nobody cares for Lalit Modi. The IPL is a crazy product which people love. And this is perhaps the only league where teams (franchise) make money whether they win or lose. So, they (team owners) are laughing all the way to the bank. When the size of the IPL was increased from eight teams to 10 teams, people thought it was bad.

Having watched the last edition of the IPL at home being completed in style, any amount of cricket played and watched seems insufficient. There is no viewership fatigue and people are ready to watch club cricket as well as international cricket at the same time. Be it home, or abroad.

The old timers, or so-called purists, are weeping the IPL broadcast/media rights will do damage! Sounds ridiculous as players have not complained. In fact, aggression, speed and fitness of players has improved. It's a myth that IPL is destroying players in India or other countries where T20 leagues are played.

We have seen at home how so many players are getting chances to break into the Indian team. It would have seemed beyond imagination that so many players will get a chance to represent the country, whatever be the format. The India versus South Africa series is being watched closely. At the Kotla in New Delhi, despite the killer heat wave, people went to see the match. That's the craze, that's the passion for T20 cricket. And that's why the IPL Gurus are selling TV rights and digital rights at astronomical sums.

At home, captaincy has been changing hands like musical chairs. After the IPL, the dadas like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are enjoying a break. God knows, for what!

KL Rahul was named captain and then got injured. Rishabh Pant was then handed over captaincy. He has more critics in the media than friends, but Pant hardly cares. He plays his cricket in his own style. Captaincy comes naturally to him and for the BCCI to give him a chance is an indication of the potential they see in him.

Two weeks ago, in this same column, I had highlighted how Hardik Pandya deserves a chance in leadership. The Gujarat Titans captain was Pant's deputy. Now, he will be leading the team to Ireland for a T20 series. Given the low standards of Rohit Sharma's fitness and how often he breaks down like an old jalopy, there is no harm in trying out new captains. The old concept of a player being promoted as captain on sheer experience in terms of number of matches being played are over.

Captaincy is special. And captaincy also is about leadership and luck. From now till the ICC World T20 in Australia this October, and the ICC World Cup (50-over format) in India in 2023, it appears nothing can be said with certainty about Rohit's leadership. His fitness is a big issue, which is now rightly under the scanner. The amount of breaks he takes is laughable. After all, professionals cannot be complaining about overload. In international football and tennis, professionals go through the grind in an even more taxing manner.

Back to the IPL viewership, what stands out clear is one thing: Win or lose, loyalties are there and viewership across all platforms is increasing manifold. Legally speaking, there is no betting in India. And even promoting betting of any form is banned. Yet, everyone knows, the illegal satta market flourishes during the IPL.

The windfall from the IPL broadcast/media auction rights has done good to even former cricketers. From Ravi Shastri to Kirti Azad, they are thinking of BCCI bosses Sourav Ganguly and Jay Shah. The latest one hears that the women's IPL will begin in 2023. Anyone who says women's cricket (T20) is boring is a fool. Their fitness standards, speed and skills have increased manifold.

So, the more one talks about the excess of T20 cricket, the more we will get to see. Choices are plenty, so if you find IPL boring, watch England play Test cricket. This huge variety being offered to viewers was unthinkable a few years ago.

Has cricket become an industry? Definitely, yes.

Views expressed are personal