IPL 6: The cool uncle

Is this the era of the IPL?

“By all counts I won’t play for South Africa again, so it’s not a desire of mine to prove anything to anyone”- Albie Morkel.

“I am not focused about my Australian career anymore. I am not really concerned about what happens to Australian cricket nor do I have any concerns about my future.” – David Hussey.

Would these players, who have not been given central contracts by their respective cricket boards, have said this if not for the overwhelming presence of the IPL? Probably not.

After Shane Watson was left out from the 3rd Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, he returned home threatening to retire from international cricket. In support, Watson’s father had something interesting to say.  He said Watson may not need the Australian cap so dearly after all. He can play the IPL and still earn enough money! So if the administrators thought that they would cross that bridge when they came to it, now would be a good time to consider crossing it.

What is interesting to see is that although administrators and cricket boards have had varying opinions on various aspects of the IPL, the players seem to be singing the same tune and it’s largely in support of the league. Matt Prior, England‘s Test wicket-keeper batsman, recently declared that it was time for the ECB to look at the IPL as a reality. So players now are openly stating that they don’t play in the IPL to impress the international selectors. The recent trend seems to be working this way – players are trying hard to do well in their own domestic T20 competitions to bag a lucrative offer from one of the franchisees in the IPL.

IPL is soon turning out to be the spoilt uncle from whom the parents want their kids to stay away from. The kids on the other hand, sighting a generation gap, want to stay as close to the cool uncle as possible. Much to the despair and dismay of the administrators, their own players now feel comfortable enough to voice their opinion in public. These opinions are harsh and the once-dominant cricket boards of the world are now humbled and are finding it hard to cope up with the changing times.

Dimitri Mascarenhas makes more money than most international players

There is also a new word that the cool uncle has ushered into the cricket world – freelancers. Players like Dimitri Mascarenhas, Ryan Ten Doeschate and Dirk Nannes – who won’t really get enough chances in the international arena – shift from one T20 league to another. What is alarming is that in spite of staying away from international cricket, these players make the same, or maybe even more, money than the players who are knocking at the door to get a chance in the international team. Take for example Dean Elgar of South Africa, who got a chance to play Test cricket against the Australians owing to the injury to J.P. Duminy. After a terrible show in Australia, he has managed to pull things back in his favour with better performance against Pakistan at home. But what after Duminy is back? Is Elgar good enough to keep him out of the team?

In the meanwhile, Albie Morkel, who is not being considered to play for South Africa, has a more flourishing career than ever thanks to the IPL and T20 leagues that are followed around the world. Looking at it from a traditionalist’s point of view, the spoilt uncle has guaranteed that his adopted kids earn more money being with him. Also, in T20, you are bound to fail often as you are always trying to do a lot in a short span of time. So a bad performances doesn’t affect someone like an Albie Morkel. On the other hand, Dean Elgar is being judged every time he sets foot on the ground to play in the longer format and is still being paid less in comparison to Albie Morkel.

Cricket, a sport which has stayed away from the clubs and franchisees until recently, is now facing another challenge. After Kerry Packer brought to the fore the much-loved and much-maligned coloured clothes and white balls, the IPL is now posing a new question to the cricket world – is cricket still the Gentleman’s Game?