Sunil Narine bamboozled the opposition with his mystery deliveries. In a similar sphere, Gurunath Meiyappan, the owner of Chennai Super Kings was booked and banned from the Indian Premier League for betting. While Chris Gayle and David Warner continued to slay the bowlers on the field, Sreesanth, along with his teammates Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila prepared to face an attorney over charges of spot fixing and conscious under-performance in the league. There were ironies galore.
The IPL, also somewhat cruelly renamed the ‘Indian Paisa League’ or the more relevant ‘Indian Problematic League’, has been making a thumping mark in the Indian summer over the last nine years. However, the tournament which was started and planned by Lalit Modi, way back in 2007 for the development of youngsters and promotion of inexperienced players, found a spot amidst controversies and issues, problems and headlines, year after year.
As the off-field conduct of players, officials and even umpires threatened to mar the league, with even sponsors making a quick exit to save their reputation, it was a Herculean task to bring cricket and the hard work of the players back onto the front pages of the national dailies.
Awaiting the customary controversy that follows the IPL
Virat Kohli was India’s one man army in the World T20
When the fourth ball of the twentieth over was carted for six during the second semi-final of the T20 World Cup against West Indies, Virat Kohli stood there distraught at the breaking of a long-lived dream. A billion Indians joined him, as they took days off to grapple with the inexplicable disappointment of bowing out from a world tournament being hosted on their own patch.
Fast forward a week later. Time was ripe for the much-awaited IPL. But it seemed that an overdose of cricket and a plethora of past controversies had left an impact, something which started to plague the Indian audience.
Suddenly, for the first time in many years, Eden Gardens opened up to a half-filled stadium as Kolkata Knight Riders began their campaign. The sight of the two new franchises, Rising Pune Supergiants and Gujarat Lions, only brought back memories of the unprofessional acts – receiving dubious payments in exchange for team information – of the owners of the dissolved teams Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings.
With growing claims that the IPL centred more upon money-making, with each and every game fixed to the very core, a deep sense of annoyance cropped up about the league leading to it being nonchalantly shrugged off by the die-hard cricket fanatics. The ones who refused to be drawn into the world of nefarious activities.
A lull spread around during the days of April. Anticipating the revelation of yet another hidden calamity within the IPL, the audience waited with bated breath to pounce once more. Critics ready to criticise, former players ready to dismiss the league as ‘anything but cricket’. All it needed was one small controversy.
A welcome break from the controversies, cricket remains the focus in IPL 9
The wait grew longer. The days, turning into weeks as Virat Kohli notched up one breath-taking hundred after another – the eyeballs turned again. The interest that had loomed to disappear was brought back as a series of close fought, highly competitive cricket made a foray into the television sets once more.
Mumbai Indians remained their inconsistent self initially, while new entrants Gujarat Lions shocked by beating heavyweights to grab top spot. Royal Challengers Bangalore’s dismal run sent hurt waves across the nation as Delhi Daredevils finally showed signs of being a contender. Kolkata Knight Riders eased their way into the top two; Sunrisers Hyderabad, with their bowling arsenal, changed the mindset about T20 being a batsman’s game. As for MS Dhoni’s Rising Pune Supergiants and Kings XI Punjab, well, they never really got the show on the road at all.
In a passionate country like India, where cricket has transcended the status of a sport into the realms of religion, masses can overlook a cricket league for the exterior factors, but cannot really ignore its magnetic charm. It was no surprise then that an impressive Mustafizur “Fizz” Rahman earned applause in a rival country or that Dhoni continued to receive brickbats in his homeland.
The lazy elegance of Rohit Sharma’s strokes matched Ajinkya Rahane’s calm batting. Rahul ‘Messiah’ Dravid turning around the fortunes of Delhi Dardevils was very similar to Brad Hodge’s running of the new Lions’ team. Shivil Kaushik’s never-seen-before action contrasted with Ravichandran Ashwin’s lack of form. The absence of Irfan Pathan did likewise against the constant backing of David Miller. Cricket roared and thundered, making a comeback into conversations of the early morning joggers as well as the evening roadside tea stalls, as IPL entered the psyche of the average Indian audience once more.
The slight blots which did not escalate into bigger reasons of worry
Brilliant takedown of the @IPL water controversy by @surjitbhalla : https://t.co/gnyI87D8ey
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) April 9, 2016
Even before the ninth edition of the IPL took off, the Board of Control for Cricket in India rubbed Indian fans up the wrong way, as it removed Harsha Bhogle from their commentary panel. Much loved for his oration and his keen eye, Bhogle’s ouster highlighted the level of discrimination which existed within the four walls of the BCCI headquarters.
The prevalent drought conditions in Maharashtra forced the matches of Rising Pune Supergiants and Mumbai Indians to be shifted to Vishakapatnam, where crowds swarmed in huge numbers to see two popular teams take the field.
Yes, Gautam Gambhir lived up to his reputation of being a brash and bold captain, courting controversy when he kicked a chair during their team’s win against the Royal Challengers. Kohli, another captain with similar traits, despite his prolific run-scoring, too engaged himself in banter which is best not written about. When the only aggressive moment on the field remained the charging of Harbhajan Singh towards his fielder Ambati Rayudu, after the latter’s efforts, or lack thereof spilled four runs, one can safely say that IPL 2016 has been a calm and smooth affair.
As the image of King Kohli devouring the batting with his stitched hands stands out of the collage of memorable moments, the IPL has finally laid its claim to being a T20 tournament where entertainment does exist, but where cricket still continues to rule the roost. The tears of the KKR cheerleaders, which made more news than their moves during the after-parties, in the end, deeply reflected the emotional synopsis which IPL 2016 turned out to be.
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