The beaming face of IPL

By Rajadhyax

Ever since it started, the DLF Indian Premier League (IPL) has irreversibly changed many equations in cricket. From a “nice new addition” it has grown into a melting pot of millions of rupees of business where exciting T20 cricket melds seamlessly with Bollywood glamour, drinks, dinner, dance and superlative entertainment. Corporate honchos are happy with the new platform to show their wares. Young Indian players are brushing shoulders with cricketing legends. In millions of homes the TV remotes have been monopolised by ardent IPL fans. Families have been divided by their loyalties with particular franchises. And, quite vitally, cricketers are smiling all the way to the bank.

The brand value of the IPL has now inflated to an incredible $ 4.13 billion in just less than three years. The number of players has increased, rookie squads have developed, innovation of strategic time-outs has started while the sheer excitement on field is nothing short of electric. From next season onwards there is an addition of two teams as well. Sahara Adventure Sports Group have bought the new Pune team for a whopping $ 370 million while the new Kochi team has been taken by Rendezvous Sports World Ltd for a little over $ 333 million.

The total number of brands associated with IPL was 40 in the first season while this year it is more than 80. Well over 100 brands are expected to align with IPL for Season Four. Theatrical rights, internet rights, post-match parties, blimp sponsorships, mobile rights, adverts at the stadium screens and ground sponsorships have together collected more funds than any other sporting extravaganza in India. Even the Hockey World Cup held earlier this year has paled in comparison to the sheer number of viewers and financial collections of IPL, while the Commonwealth Games are nowhere in comparison. Kolkata Knight Riders have earned Rs.59 crores just from sponsorships. Gate money is expected to rise this time by about 30 %. In-stadia advertising is slated to go up by an unbelievable 100 %.

Packed cinema halls in India are playing the matches on big screens and cricket is never going to be the same again. Restaurants are promising customers live telecast of matches on large screens to ensure that their business prospers. Friends are gathering at beer-bars and pubs to meet and catch the matches together. Debates at tea stalls and college canteens centre around previous day’s IPL action.

Clearly the next season promises to be bigger than all of this. Except four Indian and three overseas players, the franchises will have to offer the others for a full-fledged auction. This auction will be a better informed one as majority of players have been seen performing in the IPL and teams would have better analysis ready before bidding. Sahara is expected to spend a lot making the Pune team the richest of the event. Kochi will also spend on poaching big players. Lesser known Ranji-level players will be a good draw too. The total salary cap will be Rs.35 crores for every franchise. 10 teams will employ 25 players each. New rights using 3G technology will usher in new media platforms in business. 94 matches, instead of the present 60, will be played among 10 teams and the event could go up to 54 days.

Push aside all the detractors and self-proclaimed IPL bashers, cricket (as well as cricketers) are the outright winners here. Cricket is now a conscious career option for youngsters and the game never had it so good before. And after batting away all the sceptics, IPL Chairman Lalit Modi should get a lion’s share of credit for making this possible. That is not to say that IPL gets all the kudos for the rise of the game from the quagmire of betting and match fixing scandals, but surely it is a big spoke in the wheels of the game’s success.

“Ensure quality at all costs” says Lalit Modi and it includes both quality of cricket on the field and management off the field. That, in short, is his mantra of making IPL bigger every year. This is welcome since it means that what the critics stated about falling cricketing values is not going to happen. Logically also it rings true. People are at the heart of this success; people who switch on their TV sets, laptops, those who come to the stadium or those who follow it all on their business phones. And they will keep coming in hordes as long as they get excellent, entertaining cricket on the field.

IPL thus is a mega event comprising of a tough managerial challenge, great logistics, massive flows of funds, use of technology and mobility of other resources, but above all, it is a show of entertaining cricket. As long as it stays that way, we fans don’t have to worry about anything at all.