IPL: Big names don't run the house anymore
The Indian Premier League, for the upcoming season, seemed to have set its standards and priorities straight: all the franchises mean business regardless if they have to release big named under-performing players.
A famous quotation is used in cricket, 'overstaying ones are welcome', for people who tend to stretch their careers even after they have 'expired' long back. When IPL started in 2008, the notion that got followed was that retired star players made IPL their temporary home for earning a few extra bucks.
With the advent of innumerable T20 leagues all over the world, franchises have always had the opinion of bringing in star players with the hope of garnering sponsors and the masses. T20 cricket has the power of attracting a lot more audience as it's fast-paced and finishes off in three hours unlike the long hours of ODI cricket and Test cricket.
Owing to its pace and pyrotechnics sponsors started investing heavily which led to team owner getting rich returns. This led to huge batting and bowling style changes among the players to adjust to the rhythm as the demand for 'innovative' cricket rose.
This led to changes in the team strategies by the team owners who have accepted the reason that crowds are no longer attracted to only big names. On the contrary, they have put their faith in regular performing players who can be an asset for the team. They no longer feel the need to carry the used-to-performing 'star players', who dwell in the past glory.
If we look in the past apart from IPL, the great Sachin Tendulkar has been criticized for the same. After being eluded from scoring the daunting century of international centuries for over a year, he finally succeeded in doing so against Bangladesh.
But during that year, and even until his retirement, his performances were inconsistent, but owing to his legendary aura he continued playing for the national team. That was the case going on for the first few seasons in the Indian Premier League, where retired stars were carried by their teams, despite wavering form.
The first player of such a case who comes to mind is Yuvraj Singh, the Man of the Series in the 2011 ICC World Cup. In 2015, he was bought by Delhi Daredevils for a whopping 16 crores. His abysmal performance reflected where he scored a meagre 248 runs from 14 matches and Delhi Daredevils couldn't even qualify the group stage that year.
He moved to Sunrisers Hyderabad where he won the title that year. After that, Kings XI Punjab bought him in 2018 where his lacklustre performances were evident as he scored 65 runs from 8 matches. Subsequently, this season, the franchise has decided to let him go.
Another one who faced the same fate is Gautam Gambhir. Gambhir was in good nick in the Kolkata Knight Riders squad. His chances of making a comeback to the Indian team receded, but he kept his rich form going in his franchise. Yet, he decided to part ways with Kolkata and go back to Delhi Daredevils.
There, he resigned from captaincy soon after. He had to sit out and warm the bench and did not play for the rest of the season. Delhi has also decided to let go of him for the upcoming season as well.
Mitchell Starc was bought last year by Kolkata Knight Riders last season for a whopping 9.4 crores. But he had to sit out the entire season owing to an injury he had previously. This season, however, the Australian Cricket Board has made a statement that players who would be taking a part in next year's World Cup will not be allowed to take part in the entire IPL. This has led to Starc being excluded from next year's IPL which ultimately paved the way for his release from the franchise.
Team owners have made their priorities straight that it's just not the big names that run the house anymore. Availability, form, injuries have grown out to be key aspects in the selection of players, unlike 'past glory'. They have started making more tactical decisions, and this release of star names could make fans expect high stakes at the auction, come December.