IPL and the Old Guard

Not long ago when the Indian Premier League started to catch the imagination of the people, including the sect of ‘not-so-keen-I-prefer-saas bahu serials-to-cricket’, there was an unforeseen gush of excitement and energy throughout. Every phenomenon doesn’t exist without being hated or criticized at. Even the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Messi aren’t exceptions. Once the IPL started to capture the interests of the people drawing crowds at unprecedented levels, the true lovers of the game weren’t too enthusiastic and went into a shell as they claimed that they could see cricket being compromised for entertainment and razzmatazz.

I came across a lot of people who were not a fan of the IPL. Majority of these were fans of the classic cricket and Sourav Ganguly. With all due respect to Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on a personal level, Sourav Ganguly has been India’s best captain. He is a rage and has the most sincere fan following after Sachin Tendulkar. He chartered his own path and lived by his rules that made him a cricketer with a rare mixture of honesty off the field and aggression on the field. Hence, with these factors in mind, and thanks to Shah Rukh Khan and management proving over and over again that they don’t know anything about cricket and the hatred grew amongst the loyalists. ” NO DADA, NO IPL” started spreading like fire over the social media sites. They stayed away from IPL seasons two and three.

After retirement and proving in the domestic circuits that he still has cricket left in him, Pune Warriors bought him for Season-4 and is now their captain, going into season five. Come May 5th and one could possibly see a great divide happening, when KKR plays Pune Warriors. Bengal will see a second partition in history as loyalties would be split. While one faction would support KKR, the other would root for Pune since the team has Ganguly in it.

Last month we had Rahul Dravid retiring and with two legends gone, it’s two nails left in my childhood coffin. With Sachin showing no hint of retiring and Laxman having his back against the wall, the time to take a decision for the Australians’ terminator may come sooner than later. As a result, the only format that can make me watch them play live, is the IPL.

We have heard in the past that IPL is killing cricket and it has made a mockery of cricketing skills, making it tough for players to develop the art of temperament. These statements are made by the same people who complained about Dravid’s slow-playing style. Brushing their shoulders against modern day legends will make the youngsters improve and not worsen. It is just not the three hours spent on the field but it’s weeks together spent in the practice sessions, traveling between cities and sharing dressing rooms that will give the youngsters a chance to listen to anecdotes and advice from their senior comrades.

For true fans of anything in this world, nothing is an overkill. It’s the passion towards something that makes the heart yearn more for it. How I would like to see a Jacques Kallis or Chris Gayle like player play for India? That definitely is not possible. But, at least they play for a team I cheer for. It’s the flamboyance and the variety that makes it so good. It is two months of pressure less cricket that promises more pleasure. The thought of watching Sourav Ganguly leading a side on the field, coming down the track and lofting the ball over long-on boundary,  Rahul Dravid’s majestic square cuts or Adam Gilchrist’s heavy short arm pulls, will make IPL season the best two months of the calender year for a cricket fan.

Let the fireworks begin!