The day that some odd cricket pundit got the notion of concocting a separate segment of cricket called the 20-overs-a-side in a bid to resuscitate a game they thought was flagging, the graves of the real designers of this human pastime which has grown to more than a game, must have experienced some tremors.
 September 24, 2007 – we call this day the day on which the game of cricket really went on the reverse gear. Since their 60-overs-a-side World Cup win in 1983, India had not won a major tournament. Then when they beat the defending champs Pakistan in the last over of the final of the T-20 world championship in Johannesburg, South Africa, the euphoria in the World’s biggest cricket playing nation was just unimaginable.
The Indian team to this tournament was led by a ranker by the name of Mahendra Singh Dhoni while the top notches in Indian cricket -- Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid had decided to give this unproven gimmick a miss.
With the T-20 win, while looking at the converted Indian interest in this version of the game, some businessmen hired former international cricketers Kapil Dev, Tony Greig, Dean Jones and Kiran More as board members of the Indian Cricket League.
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| So far Sri Lanka has lost a few cricketers at least at the present context including Lasith Malinga. Malinga retired from Test cricket while turning our for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL tournament. – how many more would there be? |
However the ICL dream was short lived as the official BCCI derived its own – Indian Premier League (IPL) designed by inimitable Lalit Modi. The IPL not only shooed the ICL away, but took control of the entire cricketing world by storm after it got a set of millionaires to fund the cricketers’ dream setup.
With the IPL (Now amidst a huge money laundering charge) money, Indian cricket became the richest in the world. It is reported the BCCI is worth more than Rs. 26,000 million - the actual figure is Rs. 26,079,825,227 - according to the latest balance sheet that will be put up during its annual general body meeting on September 19 and 20.
At the end of the 2009-10 financial year the BCCI was worth exactly Rs. 23,857,730,642, as per its draft balance sheet. "The Board made a total income of Rs. ,399,605,527 and spent Rs. 7,029,529,410 during 2010-11 - a surplus of Rs. 2,370,076,117,".
India became the biggest player in the cricket market and in the past few years have also become its king maker – thanks mostly to the IPL riches.
Nevertheless the downside of the IPL riches is now surfacing. At one point of history the India cricket, especially their batsmen were equalled to poetry. The graceful movements played according to the real techniques and the use of the wrists became world famous. What happen to those during this tour of England?
A few days ago, former Sri Lankan opening batsman Sidath Wettimuny addressing the award recipients of the Sunday Times-Bata Schoolboy Cricket said that the Indians were losing the Test matches in England because they had bartered their technique to the whims of the shorter version of the game.
This statement is one of value. India not only lost all four Test matches in England while tagged as the No 1 Test playing nation in ICC ranking, but also lost the T-20s and also one of the two 50-overs games while the first ODI was rained off.
During the Test series the English bowlers exposed the feared Indian batting machine. Besides veteran Rahul Dravid, none of the batsmen who were more akin to the T-20 style of the game, was able to build-up an inning of substance and save the Indian cricket from the ignominy of a whitewash. In addition the much-looked-forward-to 100 international hundreds of master Sachin Tendulkar also became an Indian pipe dream. Besides, up to date as much as nine of their leading players have flown back home due to injuries.
And now what the Indians will have to do is to a take stock and pick up the pieces. Now they will have to get back to the drawing board and see how they are going to preserve their IPL riches while maintaining the standards that they have attained during the past few years.
Prior to this series it was dubbed as the greatest ever, but, it ended up in a whimper as the Indian are limping on.
Even Sri Lanka is stuttering under the IPL influence. The biggest hit was paceman Lasith Malinga deciding to retire from Test cricket while in India – being a part of the Mumbai Indians. He initially announced his intentions while in India.
Then the Lankan team arrived as a staggered lot in England because of the IPL. The result: Most of the top order batsmen who were involved in the IPL initially could not convert their style and eye back to the Test mode and Sri Lankans lost ten wickets in a session and also lost the series.
The IPL has even managed to get the SLC under its hat by promising an amount of money in lieu of the hired Lankan players.
Sri Lanka lost fast bowler Nuwan Pradeep Fernando who was worn down at the IPL as a net bowler and then Dilhara Fernando also injured in the same fashion.
At this end we feel that India’s problem is India’s and they should be allowed to find answers to their predicament as it is something of their own seeking. But, for Sri Lanka – can we – a team which is in the process of recuperating after the Sanath, Murali, Vaas retirement, continue to wear-down players to the IPL?
Mind you during the next version of the IPL, Sri Lanka is due to host the Englishmen for two Tests. By that time the IPL rankers may well be up in arms against the authorities. Make your game plan now, before it is too late.
We are all aware that without the Indian support the Lankan life in cricket will be an arduous one. Definitely it will not be easy and if the Lankans, in view of the England series, decline the IPLs request to hire any Lankan cricketers, the consequences would be telling. Yet, the 2012 Bangladesh series and definitely the England tests are going to come during the IPL series and these will be very important for Sri Lanka in their build-up process.
We feel now it is the time that Sri Lanka gradually make plans to meet this situation.
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