Money, Money, Money

The Indian Premier League (IPL) auction could well have been a turning point in the history of a game that thrives on tradition.

For the first time, cricketers were sold like commodities at Wednesday's auction. At the end of 10 hours of frenetic bidding, where every bid was followed with breathless anticipation, most of the stars went for sums that were considerably higher than the reserve price.

There were several surprises too with rookies such as Yusuf Pathan and Manoj Tiwary going for higher prices than tried and tested international players. And young Ishant Sharma was auctioned for an amazing $975,000 while poor Glenn McGrath was bought for his base price at the fag end of the bidding.

Was there a method to the madness? Most teams were not just looking for match-winners, but also those who could be the most marketable. Not surprisingly it was the Indian players in the pool who were the most wanted, grabbing $14.6 million of the total $38.2 million spent.

Someone like Robin Uthappa, who really has still to prove himself on the international stage, ended up being worth more than Ricky Ponting and Matthew Hayden put together.

The auction proved once again that the IPL is not just about cricket; it is also about entertainment and extravaganza.

The IPL is taking cricket into uncharted territory. The league is likely to bring about radical changes in the way cricket is played and watched. Clubs will now compete with national teams for an audience.

While the top cricketers are far richer than they could have ever imagined, the franchisees will have their work cut out. Nobody doubts that the Twenty20 format will be a hit with cricket fans. But the franchisees, which have collectively forked out $723.59 million, will have to do some serious work to recover their money.

The league will still have to convince cricket fans, who are used to rooting for their national team, to watch their local club play. This shouldn't be such a difficult task. Sports fans everywhere in the world root for both their club and country.

Innovations such as cheerleaders and live music have already been introduced in Twenty20 cricket to make the game as attractive as possible to a broad audience.

More such bells and whistles have to be thrown in to attract a loyal fan base. There is already talk of live shows by film stars before the teams take the field. Cricket stadiums, too, would have to be completely refurbished. The IPL holds the promise of redefining the experience of watching and playing cricket, in India and abroad.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Money_Money_Money/articleshow/2802652.cms