back from hibernation!!!

It feels like eternity since I last scribbled something. This hibernation has been because of long hours of work these days, continues traveling in weekends and also some laziness that has crept into me these days. As it’s been long time and to make sure I don’t loose track of writing thought will scribble something about couple of things I love to see on weekends or rather at any given point of time at home. One of them is EPL and another of course cricket. To get back into groove of writing, will put in a quickie on why I love and hate IPL.

Why I feel IPL is good for cricket viewers and lovers like me and the game as a whole:

• Don’t think there will be any other occasion where I will probably be cheering an Aussie for every 4 and 6 he hits. In my case its Hayden, he has been amazing so far in this season.
• The entertainment value of cricket had diminished over the last few years. It’s IPL and T20 that has ensured cricket gets it back.
• Cant imagine a situation when I will be praying for an Indian batsman to get out or bowl a bad ball.
  
• This has brought in the city loyalty concept that was alien to Indian sports.
• Where else can you see someone of the caliber of McGrath being dropped in favor of a lesser known player?
• Where else can you see some player who is new to his national side sledging the captain of his country and that too twice his size :)
• There is so much action on and off the field that it adds to the entertainment factor.
• Matches get over in a jiffy. One can watch the match in the evening after office and still hit the bed on time.
• What better entertainment during the hard Indian summer.
• The matches are really unpredictable. Couple of good overs with bat or ball can change the result of the game.
• Where else can you see a player slapping his national mate :)LOL.
• And of course rival players from different national sides sharing the same dressing room. In my opinion this will make the matches played between national sides more interesting.

Enough of roses, shifting the focus on thorns:

• With such enormous amount of money being pumped in, at times the game takes a beat and its more of a business venture. This will definitely spoil the fun involved in the game.
• Commentators are such shameless creatures, even commentary greats like Harsha and Ravi cant get a sentence through without mentioning the sponsors of the tournament. Commentators are naming shots after a sponsor, imagine this one commentator repeatedly calls a six as a DLFer.
  
• This crazy concept of strategic break is probably the worst thing to happen to the game. It robs the momentum of the game even in a format like T20.
• At times the Glamor quotient brought in by team owners is irritating as they get more focus than the game. Shilpa having a conversation with Geoff or Raj, who the hell cares man... except for the camera man and few idiotic commentator.

In my opinion I think in years to come IPL needs more teams and a separate window to ensure all leading players are down there playing the tournament.

RJ