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By Will 2 years ago, at the end of April Add your comment below
Allen Stanford and Lalit Modi. Two entirely different characters, both from opposite ends of the world – geographically and, arguably, morally – but both with a shared love of money and cricket. Why do I worry less about the Wild West cowboy, and more about Modi’s modus operandi?
Perhaps it’s because he’s American and has no historical connection to a cricket board. Maybe it’s because he appears to have no dirty agenda to the politics of the sport: he’s seemingly happy to pile money into the flayling West Indies cricket, and anyone else who wants to join in the fun is more than welcome. This sounds naive – of course, billionaires crave and adore money: it is their driving force – but his come-follow-me attitude is refreshing and progressive, which cannot be said of Modi. Modi’s business is power and politics; the IPL has already made him millions, but it is a vehicule to global dominance. We’ve seen this season how the ECB have been tied up in knots banning (and subsequently unbanning) various players who represented the Indian Cricket League – the antichrist to the sanctioned IPL – which demonstrates just how much power the BCCI wields.
Anyway, I digress. I like Mr Stanford and am quite excited by what he could do to counter Modi’s unquenchable thirst for dominance. He has met with the ECB – significantly, the president of the West Indies Cricket Board, Dr Julian Hunte, was also present – to finalise plans for an England v West Indies All Stars XI later this year (and possibly running over five years). The matches themselves aren’t too significant, but it could signal the start of a business relationship which expands far beyond any of our imaginings. Stanford’s 20/20 in the Caribbean was a rollicking success – some say he should be in charge of ICC’s World Cups – so it’ll be fascinating to see what he and England come up with.
Tags: allen stanford, dominance, ECB, greed, icl, indian premier league, IPL, lalit modi, money, power |
Perhaps your subconscious reasoning is like my conscious reasoning? That is, that cricket in India doesn’t want for anything at the moment, whereas cricket in the West Indies desperately needs some reinvigoration. Stanford seems to be part of that.
Can’t quite see how England vs an All Star XI would result in anything but England wins, mind.
Much as I symphatize with the likes of Pietersen and his ilk who are looking forward to winning millions for playing a game each year, I suspect I will not be the only one allowing myself a smirk as the WI all stars thump England’s sorry a*s and walk off with the cash.
I can just imagine Pietersen and Vaugh crying to the ECB – WAAAA we lost the IPL and this match !!!
Will, from whatever I’ve read about Stanford, he does come accross as a very interesting and maybe a likeable sort of a personality, qualities which are quite alien to Mr. Modi. But could that be your only argument for disparaging IPL?! IPL has evoked an interest all accross the criket playing nations and that is food for thought. IPL could be a starting point for making cricket interesting all arround and yes if we are thinking that ICC have a window for IPL, then it is only fair that ICC ( or the members of ICC directly) should also have a say in the regulations of IPL
I’d have to go along with your gut reaction about Stanford being better for the game. I would put that down to him being someone who projects a love for the game and the people who play and support it. I think the fact he is American and not brought up with it’s traditions is irrelevant.
This is paranoia of a degree that is difficult to cure.
Sunny Gavaskar was right,these english dinosaurs need to wake up and smell the coffee.India is the global centre of the game with 85% of revenue coming from it.
Wake up to this fact.
England and aus have had veto powers and an unwritten rule stating that they were the owners of the game.
Stanford??Better for what??
Definitely for england who’re ,with all due respect shit at 20-20.
Also I find it rather amusing that the very 20-20 you despise so much(which is garnering huge TV Ratings and full crowds in india) becomes all right when england is hosting it’s version.
William:Cricket in india does want at the moment.Of course, the windies are at a terrible low and theres no comparisons there ,but children even now are told to study and build a future for themselves rather than go out and play.Graduation is very important in this country.
The ‘Ranji’ trophy domestic players get pocket change compared to the aussie and english domestic guys.
I should know, I’m an example of an early quitter of the game.Now kids like Ishant and rohit are considerably ’set’ for a decent time in their lives.
There are loads of cricket watchers, but no1 really goes out and plays.
Very interestingly in the bigger cities like mumbai,hyderabad,bangalore,chennai,delhi,chandigarh the ratings for ManU games are much higher than even an india-pak ODI.
Finally teh article writer needs to understand that the IPL could have made moer money,by that I mean teh BCCI.
They chose to give every1 a decent chance by putting a Rs.20 crore cap on spendings.With the rival ICL of the Zee-Essel group threatening to take away teh best players in the world with the unbelievably huge amounts of money that were being offered to them,it was smart of the BCCi to ask the ICC for a ban on these players.
It would have spoilt their tournament.
Don’t tell me stanford wouldn’t have done the exact same thing.Also modi isn’t a politician which is why he’s so refreshing.He’s unabashedly straight-forward as in the T-20 world cup semi against aus when symonds(that retard of a man) threatened to hit him .He was ‘overenthusiastic’ in his celebrations,said the controverisal aussie batsman.
Also it’s odd to compare a biliionaire with modi who’s not worth a lot.Maybe if you’de compared stanford or whoever else to Vijay mallya it would have made sense.
It’s not modi’s money here brother.
Mallya’s put money into the worst F-1 team in the world.India in F-1 is pretty much like the windies (at present) in cricket.NO finances, good drivers not getting opportunities.He’s put money into a team that gets sold every year to some1 else and gone the whole hog with new engineers et al.His viosion is to have an indian driver(Chandok) next year racing for them and in 2010 when india will debut as a F-1 GP destination to be contending for a podium place.
That would be a good comparison.
What england needs to do is stop being rigid and focus on attacking cricket esp. their batting which is absolutely pathetic.When was the last time england beat india in a test series either??
Here’s how i’d summarise your article- Insecure,paranoid,jealous and like all of the british cricket elite-RIGID.
It is slightly alarming how polemic and agressive these internet blog posts can get. AadityaVeer, I don’t feel that your summary of the article is reomtely accurate and many of the interesting debates you raise are lost in the red mist.
I think it essential that other powers emerge as a check and balance on the IPL. Sunil Gavaska is a rather pious rent a quote these days and to justify one monopoly power on the basis of another being bad seems make no sense. For cricket to thrive internationally the focus and money must extend beyond the Indian borders.
That Stanford made a sucess of his T20 in West Indies is remarkable and he should be commended for that. The WI All-star series against England though sounds like an apalling prospect.
In the broader sense promoting Test Match cricket remains the essential challenge. The ICC has to climb out the back pocket of the BCCI for this to happen, which in turn may only be possible if Stanford can break the monopoly power of the BCCI.
Sahil, yes I agree with you that the agressiveness displayed on these blogs can get quite repulsive at times. I also agree with most of what you say, but why suddenly so much concern about BCCI’s money power and what is this monopoly that you wish to break. I think they deserve a pat for:
1. This is the first time BCCI has tried to have a domestic tournament where international stars can participate
2. As an Indian I feel thrilled that international stars want to come here to participate in our events (not very long ago it would be common for English players to be dropping out of tours to the sub-continent). This to my mind IS promoting cricket.
3. The money being generated from cricket in India is now being ploughed back…Cricketers, (the non stars too) are getting more money, retired cricketers are getting more jobs, stadiums are improving and more and more fans are enjoying the game.
BCCI does has money power now, but where do you think they have misused it as a monopoly power.
I fully agree with that its good to hear of players keen to go to India. It was a perrenial source of irritation that players (especially from England) moaned about touring Asia. Even if now their concerns are only blinded by their flashy bank balances, it’s good to hear them speak positively.
As a result of BCCI pressure Shane Bond will not play for his country against England this summer. In an era where fast bowlers are few and far between, the cricket loving community is robbed of seeing him perform in a Test Match. This is terribly sad.
India v England, in so many ways a wonderful series has been reduced to two Test Matches. An sad waste, just so that the BCCI could fit in a circus of seven one-dayers.
The handling of the Steve Bucknor affair over the winter also illustrated that the BCCI can abuse its position. I am under no illusions, his umpiring in that game was appalling and has generally been on the wane for a couple of years, but when a board can pick and choose the umpires its team competes under, you’d say its wielding its power irresponsibly. I’m also not convinced that the money it generates is being channeled into grass roots cricket in India.
Sahil,
Although you are absolutely right about BCCI forcing out Shane Bond, I say more blame has to go to NZC for not supporting their own matchwinner. Yes, BCCI has been acting like a complete thug regarding ICL but the other boards have to be strong enough to resist them.
Also, I don’t completely agree about BCCI forcing out Steve Bucknor. Indians have been complaining about Bucknor for a few years now, and there were calls to cancel his appointment even before the Aus series. If BCCI had resisted his appointment then, then you would have the same cries from all corners and people might even be justified in criticizing BCCI. Remember, the BCCI does not care about cricket – it just cares about money. Bucknor was removed from the Perth test (and Benson would’ve been removed too if he’d been scheduled for Perth) only because the Indian players voiced their opposition. And who can blame them? When a team gets such blatantly poor and one-sided decisions from an umpire, how can you expect them to have any confidence in the umpire for the next game? And once confidence in the officials is lost, the game becomes a lottery.
I agree about the rest of the polemic about the BCCI though – reducing tests vs England, and grassroots development, etc.
You are jealous , arent you Will? Why is that, whatever India does, it is a problem and it has to do with greed, money, corruption, monopoly, etc etc and whatever Eng or OZ does, it is for cricket’s good?
You know whenever I read your blogs or articles from Malcolm Connor Scyld Berry I cant help thinking..you guys cannot get over your colonial attitude.Like it or not Indians are having the last laugh..
Sahil, about the Steve Bucnor episode, Ravi has aptly summed up what i too feel quite strongly. (The reactions in the aftermath of Mike Proctor and Denis Amis ‘judgements’ are sometings which most of us Indians justify because only WE can understand how ridiculous they were and the chief referrees’ pronuncements were so apparently biased, at least to us, that WE had to react..but yes we can debate this on some other thread at more leisure). If people appointed as judges atart becoming apparently biased then we have to take action for their removal. BCCI put its foot down to support its players and all of us at home who felt very strongly.
Yes, the ‘disqualification’ of Shane Bond is a great pity and not allowing ICL to hold tournaments, in my view is absolutely wrong. But this kind of monopoly over players is being excercised by ALL boards whether they have money power or not. . If Kevin Peiterson plays in any tournament not approved by ECB, he too will be banned. I am however surprised why the BCCI has not been taken to court yet under the MRTP Act.
Vidya,
Please, please if you disagree with an points raised adress them and try to build a convincing argument to support your beliefs. Accusing people who disgree with you of a ‘colonial attitude’ is as insulting as it is inaccurate. Colonialism is hardly a word to be banded about lightly, it is an ugly stain on history that continues today in many forms. To suggest that any non-asain writer who disagrees with the shape and potential impacts of the IPL as its run by the BCCI is by definition a colonialist I think pays a great disservice to those who have suffered and continue to suffer the true impacts of actual colonialism.
“unquentionbal” – Will Luke’s recently coined addition to the English language, to describe Indian cricket bloggers.
Lets come back to Stanford…I believe his proposal is gaining momentum. That’s excellent. But I wonder why Ms.Will Luke had to quip “Anyway, I digress. I like Mr Stanford and am quite excited by what he could do to counter Modi’s unquentionbal thirst for dominance. He has met with the ECB “. (we then can’t really blame Vidya for what he writes in response), for if Stanford’s proposal is really a reaction to IPL, then that’s another good IPL is doing to world cricketers and of course cricket.
And Will, if you are reading all this, why do you want Stanford to counter Modi…leave it to the Dalmiya. He ( or some other disgruntled official here) will do so in due course.
Steve: yep, I made a typo. Unquenchable is what I meant. 2925 posts here and, I hope, that is a rare mistake.
Vidya, you are utterly wrong: India’s colonial past has nothing to do with it, though it speaks volumes that you should think it does. There are inevitably a lot of young Indians who misguidedly despise Britons for our grandparents’ involvement (or not) of India’s colonial past, sometimes rightly so. Britain did a lot of good and a lot of bad but I’m no expert. This is 2008 and I, as a 26-year-old Brit, have absolutely no opinion over Britain’s former dominance in India, or India’s unshackling of the colonial chains. This is cricket and it has nothing to do with colonies or empires, though I admit that most countries that were part of the Commonwealth or British Empire – who we brought cricket to – now want to rub our noses in it and wallop us in every sport. New Zealand, Australia, India, West Indies…everyone.
What you and others completely fail to see is the damage the BCCI and the likes of Modi are capable of. This isn’t west versus east! India are now so powerful that other member nations in the ICC are effectively under their thumb. So when India want something done, they will always get a majority share regardless of its good for the sport. So the IPL happens regardless; the Asian Bloc, some of whom are still too financially insecure, will vote for whatever India ask of them.
Having the IPL is one thing. Letting India – one member nation – control the actions of players in other countries (ref ICL players who are now not allowed to play county circket) is quite another.
If you can’t see that, then I can’t help you. But the colonialist argument is weak and plain wrong, and frankly saddens me that you can’t move on from that. And before you ask, I have a lot of Indian friends, all of whom live in India and yes I adore the country and will be going back there in October for a holiday, with my “I am not a colonialist” T Shirt on for you all to laugh at.
Will, I was hailing your creativity with a clever slip of the finger, not correcting your speelling, I mean spelling. I wouldn’t be that puerile. I hope.
Actually my little joke was in response to the overwhelming self-importance, and one-eyed verbosity of so many Indian cricket bloggers.
I’m all for the IPL in principle. It seems to make perfect sense to have a fairly short competition involving a lot of the world’s best players to be played each year in the country with 85% of the world’s cricket revenue. Whether their greed cocks that up or not in the long term we shall see.
What excites me about Stanford, though, is his idea that cricket can be taken effectively to new markets to win new fans, not just to give existing fans something to spend more of their money on. Listening to his BBC interview I can almost imagine an English domestic competition which is to world cricket what the Premiership is to football.
If some of the attention and money in cricket is diverted to domestic competitions perhaps we’ll go back to having less and better international cricket, and with worldwide Stanford TV growing grassroots support in new places we might eventually get world competitions with more competitive teams than the current 8-10 usual suspects.
Will, if Vidya errs in attributing your reactions to the “colonial” past, its because you fail to camouflage your bias.
You write “There are inevitably a lot of young Indians who misguidedly despise Britons for our grandparents’ involvement (or not) of India’s colonial past,” but I cannot recal seeing any post on this or any other blog talking about what the Brits did or did not do 60 yeas ago.
You write “What you and others completely fail to see is the damage the BCCI and the likes of Modi are capable of…So the IPL happens regardless” but you fail to mention why happening of IPL is damaging. (Yes there are n number of purists here too who are aghast at the tamasha unfolding, but I don’t think that is what you are alluding to).
You write ” Having the IPL is one thing. Letting India – one member nation – control the actions of players in other countries (ref ICL players who are now not allowed to play county circket) is quite another”. Haven’t you noticed who is deciding what English players have to do ??! ( or when players participated in the Kerry Packer series wern’t the restrictions very simialr??) Why this selective memory?
And Will stop this “I cant help you” bit. It seems you need it more than we do. One would have thought that as a seasoned journalist you would have been more receptive to the critical comments to your article. In fact you should be grateful that we are reading your column and posting our responses.
You are welcome to India and, of course, you can wear any T shirt you want including the Ralph Polo ones made locally or even ones with ‘I love IPL?’
Will,just an example…USA isnt respected and is committing a lot of atrocious things but it has money, so it commands power in the world. Ditto with India .We are ruling the game now and treating other countries like shit but then with money comes power and arrogance.
Not long ago Eng and OZ were ruling the game. They treated other countries esp those from the subcontinent as dirt. Did anyone complain..NO-The reason, they had power.Like it or not it will be the way for a few more decades till Indians lose their desire for cricket. Till then stop whingeing.Your turn will soon come!
Vidya,
That’s a nonsensical argument. When growing up as a child, you are exposed to a variety of people with differing amounts of power. Who you follow goes a long way in determining how your life turns out. Yes, USA abuses power in the rest of the world, and England and Australia did it in cricket 20 years ago. But that is irrelevant. India does NOT have to follow their example. By your argument, if Pakistan acquires a lot of wealth and power in the next 20 years or if China starts playing cricket and starts jerking people around in the cricket world, would that be acceptable? How long will this cycle of one abusive power after another continue?
I agree that there is a great deal of condescension in most English and Aussie articles about the IPL or BCCI’s power in general. And to see international cricketers not moaning about coming to India is actually a welcome change. BCCI acting with a bit more humility and responsibility would go a long way in assuaging fears all around.
As Spiderman’s uncle (?) says, “With great power comes great responsibility”
Ravi/Sahil,
Hey guys did you see the Royal Challengers VS Rajasthan Royal Match? Warnie is just too good. Throughout the match, his presence seemed to dominate the match.
The last scene, Yunus riding piggy back, with heavy pads on, on Warnie was an unbelievable sight.
The way Warnie has made these youngsters of Rajasthan Royals fire is just fantastic.
Dude, I’ve been supporting Hyderabad ever since the day of the auction (well, for other reasons too, of course), and it sooo broke my heart when Symonds dished up those hit-me balls.
But Dileep Premachandran is absolutely right when he calls Warne the Maradona of cricket. Rajasthan would seriously have been in the dumps if not for Warne in two successive games. I shudder to think what would have been if he’d ever captained Australia. The contrast with Laxman’s captaincy could not have been more stark.
Respect, respect……..
btw…I think you meant Deccan Chargers vs Rajasthan Royals
Yup, Warnie and VVS are living examples of why a captain’s role is so important.
I live in Brussels (at the moment) so have not had a chance to see any of the IPL. I’m not entirely sure I would watch it too closely even if I could.
Warne is an absolute champion, probably the best cricketer of our age. I’d have loved to see him captain a Test match, the infinate nuances of Test cricket would illustrate just how intuitive and active his cricket brain is.
Sahil,
I live in the US, and the games impinge on my work mornings, but believe me, they’re worth it. There’s been much written about the game dying because its batsmen vs batsmen, but the most thrilling moments have been when batsmen have been tied down by the likes of McGrath, Asif, Warne and Ishant Sharma, and have managed to break the shackles. And we’ve had two of the most thrilling games in the last two days.
As Lalit said, the scenes following yesterday’s game (Royals vs Chargers) featuring Warne and the other Jaipur players were unreal!
As I write this, Sangakkara is taking on Pollock, not through slogs but by way of beautiful, correct cricketing shots. What fun!
Try IPL. You can watch it on Sopcast (not sure of the legality though).
By the way…this thread was supposed to be about Stanford. Sorry for hijacking it. If another post about IPL comes up, I’ll post my comments there.
First, the IPL and no doubt the Sanford Tournament are garish and vulgar. Furthermore they represent everything that cricket doesn’t. Cricket offers the world an antithesis to the culture of instant gratification and boorish ostentation that is consuming the world. IPL and Sanford are to cricket as Andrew Lloyd Webber is to Beethoven. I sincerely hope this nonsense stops. Cricket has a big enough base of loyal fans to keep it going. We don’t need the rifraff and we don’t need Bollywood.
To the Indians on the blog: Get over yourself. I’m Indian and don’t see myself as a victim of colonialism. It happened 50 years ago. A lot has happened since. Modern Britons don’t have the time to plot new strategies aimed at the denigration of their former colonies.
Sahil:
You are not indian and your name isn’t sahil.Don’t pretend.You’re not upto it.
To ‘Prashant’ and every1 else pretending to be indian:
What colonialism??I never brought that up read my post.
“What you and others completely fail to see is the damage the BCCI and the likes of Modi are capable of. This isn’t west versus east! India are now so powerful that other member nations in the ICC are effectively under their thumb. So when India want something done, they will always get a majority share regardless of its good for the sport. So the IPL happens regardless; the Asian Bloc, some of whom are still too financially insecure, will vote for whatever India ask of them.”
This is what I categorise as paranoid rubbish.
The indian board has done absolutely no harm tpo any1 but indian cricket.
With england and aussie dinosaurs at the helm ‘india’ will never get what it wants.Look, the indian board had to protect its interests against the ICL.
What would the english board have done in a similiar situation??
English fans should be putting pressure on their board and players to produce results.You keep getting walloped by half decent sides.
Also if lalit modi makes you insecure ,it is because he’s an indian.Why are you so hesitant to admit it??
Stanford has said that he would bankroll the event ONLY IF THE ECB PROMISED A BIG RETURN ON THE INVESTMENTS.
The IPL owners have put in money knowing they wouldn’t break even maybe even after the 1st 2 years.
What has india done that makes you think they’re bullying every1 around??
Don’t tell me you belive the aussie media??
For me the best thing to have happened to international cricket is the exit of SPEED.
I have a lot of english, pakistani, and aussie friends too.
Most of my aussie friends are in the media though they don’t cover sports.They have a completely different take on this.
Thankfully they’re very secure.
To all you insecure and paranoid cricket fans who despise the indian board.Let me tell you , i dislike them even more but for different reasons.For me the indian board (modi) has done a great job with the IPL.We’re going to new heights.
Also let me make it clear that the BCCI would encourage and whole heartedly support the same league format in other countries as well.
That is why modi came up with the champions league idea didn’t he??
But the pathetic sector of english fans continue to rant.
It would be a lot like the football leagues.
Why in the Fuc**ng english hell don’t you have problems with the barclays premier league stealing away all the good footie players of the world to play for english clubs against their own home clubs??
You , my friend , have a lot of soul searching to do.
You require two posts to say that people who disagree with you on this thread aren’t really Indian, and that anyone English who disagrees with you is racially insecure? Who’s insecure and paranoid now?
Well, most indians agree with me.The s’posed ‘indians’ here aren’t really indians.I’ve experienced this b 4 ,with guys pretending to be indian and writing anti-india posts.
“But the PATHETIC SECTOR of english fans continue to rant.”
That would be one of the many different types of british fans.I don’t need to defend myself.My friends know how racially UNDISCRIMINATIVE, if thats a word, I am.
And finally , I required 2 posts to clear the wrong arguments mentioned.I think I did a good job.It’s a malaise with some cricket fans around the world that have far more opinions than they have information.
You tell me are you 1 of the paranoid hypocritical ones or are you from the well-informed and unbiased sector of cricket fans??
It depends on what your view of what well-informed and unbiased is. Regarding the IPL, even though I like the T20 format and don’t object to large salaries etc., I can’t say I’m a fan of it, as I think some form of patriotism/team loyalty should be involved, and I can’t see that happening when the teams buy 10 overseas players each that get all the attention, while the local players it seems get very little.
Regarding the BCCI, I think they’re very over-the-top. I don’t mind them wielding a certain amount of influence, but when they make a big show of it (eg. threatening a tour boycott over the Harbhajan thing), then I regard that as intimidation, and I think it goes too far. And even though England and Australia may have wielded their power too freely in the past, I don’t think two wrongs make a right.
Marcus, very well said, but this thing about team loyalties stemming from patriotism versus international stars is indeed a tricky issue. Speaking from India, our loyalties stop at the national level and local club (or state) level feelings are nothing much to talk about. The franchisee are of course trying their bit to evoke these local feeling through massive ad campaigns.
Regarding BCCI’s threat of tour boycott, it was more an Aussie media hype. BCCI NEVER made such a threat, though some officials wanted BCCI to do so.
What hit cricket followers here was the manner in which the match referee conducted the hearing and pronounced the verdict. Hayden and Clarke later denied hearing the word, the Umpires who were close by did not hear the word, NO ONE HEARD THE WORD, then on what basis did the match refree charge Harbhajan. (Read what Justice Hansen had to say about it)…Marcus, only an Indian can understand the shock waves that Mike Proctors pronouncements created. Marcus, for you all it was no big deal…the verdict was simple…if an Aussie cricketer says this upstart cricketer from the subcontinent has used a racial slur, that IS FINAL. This thing about taking an Aussies word but not an Indians, is someting which is not acceptable.
Yes, two wrongs will never make a right….and as Hayden has very aptly said, we need to understand each other.
8 overseas players,not 10, firstly.Secondly, threat to boycott, etc is what I was referring to as paranoia of the highest degree.You want to believe the aussie cricket media, go ahead.It’s a free world.
Local players don’t get attention??The top batsman and top bowlers have been indians.All the MOM awards (almost) have been won by indians.Young internationally unknown indian cricketers (mostly batsman) have made a name for themselves.
In an event of such a large magnitude after much thought you manage to come up with 2 grievances.That clearly indicates that the IPL has got most things right.
I don’t need to repeat myself on the champions league format that lalit modi has wanted to create and start in october.It would benefit cricket boards around the world too.Somthn most overseas cricket fans were tense about.
For example if mathew haydens home state were to win the aussie domestic competition, and chennai superkings went on to be one of the 2 finalists of the IPL,the franchise would have to pay his home state a minimum of 250,000 us$ to get hayden to play for them and not for his native state.
Are you really watching the IPL??
This is the first year and already we’ve seen team loyalties being built.Serioulsy how much IPL have you watched??
Don’t tell me you didn’t see sreesanth gettn booed by the jaipur crowd or dravid gettn booed by the mumbai crowd.Other examples of support would beshane warne gettn ganguly out and the crowd erupting into raptures.
I was skeptical about the ability of the IPL to give us such situations, but it has.Andrew symonds enjoyed huge support in hyderabad.That itself is enough illustration of my point.Even so, i’d like to give you another example when sehwag played the best innnings of the IPL in hyderabad(95 in 40 balls),there was pin drop silence in the crowd.Viru was surprised and waved his hands about trying to get the crowd going.The crowd then suddenly realised that it was a great innings played by some1 who they’ve cheered for all their lives.they proceeded to wake up and give him a modest applause.Later when quizzed about this incident , viru responded by saying that even though he was surprised, since he’s used to huge receptions even outside of india, it was good for the IPL and it showed how loyally the supporters are backing their teams.
Please make a relevant point that you don’t like about the IPL, because I don’t see any.
AS Gill
As a matter of fact, I haven’t watched any IPL. Do you know why? Because it’s on at 12:30 AM at Perth, and I’m not staying up that late just to prove a point to you. As for the top players being Indians, I’ve seen the batting averages, dominated either by overseas players (especially Australians) or by already well-known Indian internationals. And whenever they show the short scores on the news, it’s almost always been internationals who’ve dominated. But I guess the Australian media falsified the scores, right?
Doubtless you’re going to say that I have no right to criticise something I’ve never seen. Nevertheless, (even though I think the IPL has some good aspects) I don’t like the idea of cricket going down the road of soccer. You may not think that’s a valid argument, but nevertheless, it’s my opinion, and only a complete bigot would disregard that as “irrelevant.” Besides, as you said, it’s a free world.
And I’m a big fan of the whole Champions League idea. Just as long as WA gets to keep Shaun Marsh.
Marcus, your views are quite logical and your lack of interest in IPL understandable. In fact IPL is basically an INDIAN domestic event catering to Indian fans. To that extent one finds it strange when seasoned writers like Will criticise BCCI or Modi for organising IPL (terming them as bullies or people with an unquenchable thirst for power) as if organising the IPL has usurped some international event or some of THEIR domestic event.
Of course, if IPL still evokes interest overseas, which it is doing because of the presence of international players…then thats a bonus. In fact I do note that because of some Aussies playing here, you do have some, albeit passing interest in IPL.
Talking on a different note, Marcus, the performance of the Aussies (retired, present and upcoming) here has been awesome in every sphere and even off the field. Warnie is topping the popularity charts (despite his outbursts…or maybe because of them) and Shaun Marsh has been a revelation. The images of David Hussey sliding near the boundary ropes picking and throwing all in one motion, are even more vivid than his 50 ball century. McGrath continues to bowl in that copyright corridor of his and still continues to have a child-like enthusiasm. No wonder the Aussie team is THE best. Because of the big money involved in IPL, cricketers are playing with great intensity, and when that happens, its real fun to watch these cricket legends play or the youngsters match them. Marcus, the Australian media will never falsify score nor will the Indian media, because that is too objective…but don’t rely on them in matters which are subjective. They will not tell you how brilliantly Warnie has been captaining a lowly rated side or how he knocked off 17 runs from Symmo’s last over to win the match. The media will always first try to gauge what the popular view point is among their readers and then continue to feed it.
Lalit
Thank you for your well-reasoned response. I’ll concede that maybe the boycott threats were exaggerated, but I think there’s some evidence of “thirst for power” in their treatment of the ICL. Anyone who plays for them risks being banned, even if they’re not Indian themselves- I’d be surprised if there wasn’t some pressure from the BCCI to ban these players, as I can’t think why else foreign boards would have a stake in which league their players play for.
Yes, you are quite right about the ICL bit. I for one had thought that BCCI’s action of banning players who play for ICL, would be struck down by the courts. One Mumbai crickter, who plays at the local club/college levels has done so and the ban imposed by BCCI against him has been struck down. Similar results have happened at the English county level too. But I wonder if other boards are accepting BCCI’s ‘request’ to ostracise players wo are participating in ICL is out of pressure or whether these things are quid pro-quos? I tend to think its the latter unless I get corrected
Marcus:
If u don’t wach the IPL, thats fine with me.Two hoots.
But to despise somthn without knowing anything about it is pathetic.All top scorers are indian, top wicket takers are indians.
Now your media would be interested in covering their players, right??
Be more specific and tell me who are these unknown foreign players who’ve worked this wonderfully??
If u don’t like cricket going down the road of football or ’soccer’ as you put it, again 2 hoots.Thats fine , i don’t hate you for that.
Anywayz the international players should ideally be making bigger contributions than the local unknown india guys.Thats y they’ve been picked haven’t they??
Even so internationally unkown indians have won a lot of man of the match awards and i would include indians who aren’t in the present team.These would include Manpreet Gony,Ashok Dinda,Shikar Dhawan,Subramanium Badrinath,Abhishek Nayar,Yusuf Pathan,Swapnil Asnodkar,Takawale,Kohli,Jadeja,sivaramakhrishnan,Saha,Nehra,VRV Singh,the list is endless.Best strike rate, fastest 50 all belong to indians.
The orange cap is held by an indian and the purple cap is held by 3 indians at the moment.I haven’t even included indians who’ve made it to the squads of national teams and don’t get in2 the 11.ALso not included are indian test players , a few of which have made matchwinning contributions,and young indian internationals who’ve played a handful of matches.
You say theres no loyalty towards one’s team whereas recently dhoni gets booed in mumbai, sehwag nicks shoaib to the keeper and the kolkata crowd erupts.
If you don’t want to stay up late or don’t want to watch the IPL , have no valid info on it, and yet want your points taken seriously, i’d like to inform you that only some1 with unbelievably hypocritical values would do the same.
Of course the BCCI wants ICL players to be banned.I think thats a little childish, but what else could they have done, i have explained this point earlier in this blog.Scroll up and read it.I hope the issue gets settled.But to blame the BCCI for everything that they do is equally childish.
It’s good that you’ve gained info about the champions league concept which i’m sure the aussie media that you so hopelessly try to defend, would have kept hidden from you.
Was watching the Test at Lords’ currently on.
Couldn’t help comparing this with IPL.
Watching the men dressed in whites, the serene atmosphere at the ground, the gentle applauses from the stands, coupled with the oohs and aahs… a perfect way to spend the day away from work. There was nothing great in the match itself, but still it was a delight to watch.
No wonder Tests have been played for over 100 years and will continue to survive. T20s, ODIs are good interludes and should remain so.
Marcus, I believe court proceedings about banning of ICL players is underway: Below is an extract from an article posted about 2 months ago “Has the BCCI bought the game of cricket, asks judge Deshpande”
View Source: Daily News & Analysis
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had to face some sweet-chin music on Monday when a city judge on Monday asked whether the cricket board had “bought the game of cricket” in the country.
Judge ND Deshpande of the City Civil Court raised the question after an advocate appearing for the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) argued that the BCCI, which is a private body, “controls all games of cricket and all the maidans [in the city] can be used only by BCCI affiliates”.
The MCA counsel was arguing against a case filed by Nikhil Mandale, an aspiring cricketer from Ruparel College, who was barred from competitive cricket, including the inter-collegiate cricket tournament of Mumbai University, because of his association with Essel Sports Private Limited.
Mandale sought a permanent injunction against the MCA, the university, and Ruparel College, restraining them from obstructing him from playing in cricketing events. He said the ban would hurt his cricketing career. “After all, the state and national teams are picked from amongst the best college and school players,” he said.
Lawyers Dinesh Gandhi and Ashok Sarogi argued that Mandale’s fears were real and born out of the overt hostility he experienced on February 12 at the hands of MCA secretary Hemant Waingankar at an inter-collegiate match at the National Club grounds.
Mandale said that during the match between Ruparel College and HR College, the umpire, for no reason, asked him to leave the field. When he refused, Waingankar “forcibly removed (him) from the field”, saying the university had debarred him from playing inter-collegiate cricket.
But advocate Sagar Talekar, appearing for the university, told the court that “no such instructions were ever given”. Talekar did not, however, deny that the entire Ruparel College team had since been banned from inter-collegiate cricket because of Mandale’s association with Essel Sports.
“Contrary to common perception, the BCCI is a private body but acts like it is a statutory authority for cricket in India,” said Sarogi. “It chooses the national team for international matches, so any bias is bound to affect the national interest and the aspirations of an individual’s sports career.”
Advocate Nihar Ghag, appearing for Essel Sports, argued that aspirants chose to associate with Essel as cricketers of note – Kapil Dev, Brian Lara, Tony Greig, Dean Jones, and others – had collaborated with the company to guide young cricketing careers through scientifically designed training methods.
The judge has ordered the MCA to file a written reply to Mandale’s contentions by April 7.
AS Gill
I’ve got the batting and bowling averages in front of me, and in the top 12 for both there are three unkown Indians each- Dhawan, Badrinath and Asnodkar the batsmen, and Mishra, Shukla and Kulkarni the bowlers. The rest are taken up by either international players, and by already-established Indian internationals. Interestingly, Asnodkar and Mishra have only played three games each, which raises the question of why have they not played more? Obviously they’re capable players, but there hasn’t been room for them due to the international heavyweights who play instead, even if they don’t perform.
As to crowd loyalties- I’m certain that Mumbai fans want the Indians to win, and that Kolkata fans are going for the Knight Riders etc. The problem I have is that the teams aren’t that representative of Mumbai or Kolkata IMO when four internationals play for them, and a further four in the squad. It’s not just an Indian problem, either- I get disheartened whenever I see how many Kolpak South Africans are clogging up the English County system. But in Australian state cricket, for example, every state team has its home-town heroes, players who give their all for the state and rarely, if ever, get international recognition. It’s a little dissapointing to me that it takes a cavlcade of international stars to get the Indian cricket-loving public to get excited about this new tournament.
As to the Australian media- yes, it has its biases, like every other media outlet in the world. But I don’t know how much of the Australian media you’ve experienced
first-hand- it strikes me that you’ve made up your mind about it based almost entirely on their coverage of events like the Harbhajan monkey incident. I’m curious as to how the Indian media portrayed the outcome of the Sydney Test. I’d be shocked if pretty critical of the umpiring in that Test.
Lalit, I’m with you. There’s a place for Tests, ODIs and T20, and a proper balance needs to be found for each (I think the current series of 3, 5 and 1 is just about right). Fortunately, the new ICC Chief Executive agrees with us. Long may Lorgat reign!
Sorry, that last sentence is supposed to say “I’d be shocked if it wasn’t pretty critical of the umpiring.”
Marcus,
Talking about the Media, the concept envisages such a wide spectrum, that that you can pick up any kind of snippet you want, to prove a point. So what may be splashed in the media is something to be ignored. Generally the media here tries to sensationalise any issue, to attract attention, and in this process they tend to go overboard. I’ve now lost count of the number of TV ‘news’ channels I shudder to switch on when cricket series are underway.
But talking about umpiring, there are two in the elite pannel, Hair and Bucknor, in whose ATTITUDE we cricket fans here too had been noticing somekind of prejudice against the players from the subcontinent. In Sydney so many things happened together that things had to boil. What sent shockwaves was the manner in which Mike Procter ‘judged’ the whole issue. (Read what Justice Hansen wrote about the EVIDENCE on which Mike Proctor pronounced his verdict. The fact as per Justice Hansen was Symmo abused Harbhajan, Harbhajan abused him back in the most typical Indian (read it Punjabi) reaction ( In Punjab if you call any one a Fu***r, he will scream ‘Teri Maaki’ before fistcuffing you, or running away).
Talking about the elite panel of umpires, I think ICC MUST increase the numbers and its time we needed to rethink about umpires not being allowed to officiate in home series. ICC should allow technology to have a greater role, allow more referrals to the TV replays or any other technology as in tennis and allow the elite umpires to officiate in home series. What say?
I say yes! Actually, I think it should go a bit further and not have a limited number of referrals, but just allow the umpires to use the technology at their discretion. It wouldn’t take away from their job completely, but it would mkae sure that most 50-50 decisions would go the right way, and impartiality would be ensured much more than it is with neutral umpires. As for Bucknor- he should be put out to pasture. No offense to him, but he hasn’t been at his best for a while now.
Mr. Will, care to comment on this and on what has gone wrong?
Cricinfo staff
May 18, 2008
Allen Stanford may be forced to consider scrapping the winner-takes-all element of his annual $20million Twenty20 match beginning in 2010 after England’s players have reportedly rejected the idea.
According to the Mail on Sunday, they are worried about the blame implications of perhaps losing £10million to the West Indies XI through – for example – a misfield, which could ultimately impact on team cohesion. Potential rifts and injury concerns are also a factor in their resisting even an alternative idea that every player in the game is paid a £500,000 appearance fee.
The players are backed by the ECB who can envisage a situation whereby a player plays down an injury in order to take the cash, and then perhaps does himself more harm, keeping him out of international commitments. Their preference would be to spread the appearance money across the squad, with a player’s share of the pot based on a formula determining their worth to the side based on ability and experience.
Last week Stanford’s idea hit another stumbling block when the MCC warned it would not sanction Twenty20 matches featuring Stanford’s trademark black bats
Firstly, somthn very interesting.British author and playwright Lord Jeffrey Archer praised the Indian cricketers and described them as the “best ambassadors of the sport in the world.”
Interesting indeed.
Marcus:
Finally I understand and accept 1 of your points.The 1 about representation—-.
I agree with you there, but the IPL was envisioned to have a global flavour.4 internationals are allright.I have an issue with ishant sharma playing for delhi or a bhajji playing for mumbai.
As for the aussie media, I do have first hand experience not just of the media but also of quite a few journalists who are friends in that country.So I don’t think you have any point there.I get to knowe whats going on there.My cousin brother is studying there there with my extended family.We know exactly what happens there.
Also, why do you look at averages??Stats show you watever you may want to see isn’t it??
These internationals are the best in the world.You want me not to compare them with indian internationals( not even the ones who just about played a handful of matches) and to compare them directly with these big international stars.
They’ve still done very well.Hasn’t yusuf pathan been amongst the most destructive batsman in the league??
asnodkar,salunkhe,dinda,saha,dhawan,yomahesh,sangwan,gony,vidyut,nayar,takawale—–etc etc.
BTW Like I said earlier the orange and the purple cap are held by indians at the moment.
At this moment of understanding between us, i’d like to ask you to raise the white flag and peacefully respond.
Anger is a sign of frustration.I’d also like to know which team you like.
Even right now there are about 25 indian ‘international’ players who’ve done very well that you don’t want to count.There’s 2 teams there.We could play with an india ‘A’ team and beat most guys in the ODI format of the game.Whats the problem, friend??
AS Gill
I’m happy to raise the white flag, just as long as you don’t take it as a sign of surrender. 
The one team who’s fortunes I’m interested in is Punjab, because Shaun Marsh plays for them and I’d like to see how he does ahead of the tour to the Windies. Saying that, they have the worst name I’ve ever heard, so half of me wants them to lose on general principle.
The representation issue is really my main objection. An international flavour is fine, but I think that could be achieved just as well by hiring just four players per team, and play two of them at a time. After all, it is the Indian Premier League. And I’m happy to see that Dhawan, Y. Pathan etc. are doing well, but most of them aren’t really dominating the tournament. As you say, you can’t compare them to international veterans- yet they’re expected to play around them and try to keep up.
As to the media- it’s all relative. There are so many places where the media is completely state-controlled and propagandistic, that the Australian media shouldn’t even be on the radar.
As to your second post- I look forward to the Western Warriors crushing Rajasthan in the Champions League a greta deal. I wonder what the local IPL players can achieve against us, eh?
Marcus,
At 4 international players per side, we are still giving 56 local players a chnce to compete with the best in the world.
Confining international representaion to just 2 per team would lower the standards tremendously and tourneys like this would then be another domestic club affair, which we alredy have a plenty. The events then would hardly evoke any interest, just like the existing domestic matches and we’ll be back to where we were.
In fact I feel we should increase the number of max international players to 5 a side, have 10 teams and 2 matches a day. In this way we can develop 10 centres with world class facilities and also give cricketers all over the world to earn well.
Talking about the Auussies here, stats quoted by Gill are too inadequate to summarise their contribution. It is amazing that the 3 retired players (McGrath, Warnie, Gilly) and 3 upcoming ones (Watson, Marsh, Hussey) are creating such an impact here.
Lalit
After India’s victory in the T20 WC, I’d be shocked if a more predominantly domestic tourney didn’t arouse any interest. In Australia, a Pura Cup (4-day match) on a Sunday morning at the WACA will draw in roughly 1000 spectators (peak crowd), a 50-over day-nighter will draw in between 4,000 and 7,000. A domestic T20 will attract very close to a full house- that’s about 22,000 spectators.
I’m sure that if international representation was restricted to two players per game, there’d still be crowds, and the prescence of some international stars would give it that intrnational flavour- like with County cricket. If Dale Steyn and Chris Gayle, for example, sign as overseas players for Northants, for example, then that’s an added attraction. If five Kolpak players sign on for the Northants, then the international presence is too much, and everything I’ve read suggests that most County fans are fed to the teeth with the situation. It shouldn’t be necessary for the IPL to risk the same situation.
“A domestic T20 will attract very close to a full house- that’s about 22,000 spectators….” well, this has not happened here so far, but then we are still new to T20. Maybe if IPL manages to create some interest in “cricket” too and domestic cricket here too starts drawing crowds (albeit the T20 variety) then that would be revolutionary for cricket. (Of course I am optimist that the T20 variety will find many takers and what you say about Australia, could be true for India too. But here people are star crazy and the clamour for stars is not likely to subside at least not for a couple of years)
I think the limit of 4 foreign players in the playing eleven is just right. Anything less would reduce the competition from its world class status. If foreigners numbers is increased to 5, the local players’ contribution will be reduced and the local fans emotional connect will be severely affected.
Best example for this is the punjab team. In most of the matches all 4 foreign batsmen finish the job and even Yuvraj’s contribution is hardly noticiable. May be that’s why the Mohali stadium often looked half full.
Chennai…,
What you say is very valid.
I feel if we increase the number of teams to say 10, then the tourney will be able to accommodate 8 more international players and also allow the domestic players to play for their actual regions.
Anyway now I think the attention is going to shift to the Champions League and I already forsee huge problems.
I think the big problems are going to be the result of Lalit Modi’s high-handedness. Preventing teams who qualify from playing ICL players means that the two England teams who make it to the Champions League will in all likelihood not be as strong as the teams who make it to the final of the English T20.
Secondly, I don’t really like Modi’s statement that IPL teams will get priority over players whose domestic teams make it to the Champions League. Apart from anything else, the other boards still have the power to cancel the “no objection certificates” and may start doing so if the IPL starts keeping players from representing their own states. Besides which, the Australian board’s been given the power to write the rules and regulations for the tourney, so it’s not his place to issue such a statement in the first place.
Meanwhile, it looks like the deal between ECB and Stanford has come through.
Marcus,
Absolutely.
The way BCCI handled the ICL issue has not gone down well with a lot of us here and now Modi making this statement is sure to ruffle a lot of feathers.
I’m a bit surprised why public opinion has been so muted about the way the ICL issue has been handled so far. I think if some of the Boards take a stand (ECB has all the reasons to do so) the matter should get resolved quite easily.
Well now apparently no English counties will be considered if they have any ICL-affiliated players at all, even if they drop them for the tournament. And Modi isn’t even responsible for writing the regulations! Does the man’s ego know no bounds?
I hope the ECB stands up to this silliness before it becomes full-blown madness.
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