CRICKET LEAGUE - PROMOTION OR PREMONITION ?

When ICL (Indian Cricket League) was announced, it was a great relief for many cricket fans like me who were incarcerated with boredom caused from the certainty of 50 - 50 game. It came as an angel for all cricketers who have retired but struggling to make a living. It gave youngsters a chance to play with some senior most players. Ironically, BCCI a totalitarian regime came out all guns banning cricketers who sign a contract with ICL, and even went on to start its own version of league called IPL (Indian Premier League). Two toasts at such short span of time, it was recipe i could not wait to eat. And just like any other cricket fans, i was overwhelmed with joy.

And this followed up with franchising involving some entrepreneurial minds and glamor offering a mammoth pay packages to top cricketers. IPL soon became a force to reckon with and painfully ICL was left in the oblivion. To many fans all over the world, few riveting possibilities have always remained elusive, like Ponting facing Lee, Glichrist facing McGrath, Warne bowling to Symonds etc. But now IPL has managed to sumptuously concoct worlds greatest talent at one stage. What a treat !!!!

On prima facie, its all looks green and prosperous. Unfortunately, Murphys Law is at full affect here. Recent development of events have exposed the devil in detail. IPL has posted a catastrophic distraction from National Cricket Interest and inflicted cracks into the basic building blocks of any cricketers, the test cricket or rather the real test.

Recent event's such as australian and many other bright cricketers considering retirement, few cricketers blatantly maintaining double standards, intervention of franchises into under - 19 cricket and dilution of national interest are just one of many in the sempiternal list. It's becoming evident that the new generation of indian cricketers are having greater appetite for instant cricket than for test cricket. Dhoni, Yuvraj etc . have great records in ODI cricket, but their test records redefined the word preposterous. It's hard to believe that these cricketers will be replacing the pillars like Ganguly, Dravid and Sachin. No doubts these are signs that presage a grim fortune reckoning for test cricket, and IPL has added salt to the injury. All of sudden IPL now sound's like Indian Precarious League!!!

In an era where word 'instant' seems to be pervasive in food and technology industry, has now made inroads into cricket - 'Instant Cricket'. Where does this all lead cricket to ? More money? More fame? The answer to this lies with the protocols that would be orchestrated by BCCI. As mentioned earlier in this post, cricket league is a delicious recipe and i do maintain my stand on that provided BCCI maintains a cap on number of League tournaments and stop the foray of under 19 cricketers into the league or else IPL would turn into a recipe for disaster. Young cricketers must be motivated to realm of test cricket and BCCI must embrace professional practices at grass root level which have always remained of least priority in their agenda.