The Indian Premier League. And why we will miss it...

The IPL is finally over.  What will we watch now from 8 pm everyday ? 

I have fought off the temptation to blog on the IPL till now, but isnt a review of a movie supposed to be writen only after the movie is over?

And a what an entertaining blockbuster movie this has been. I remember discussing the team compositions just after the player auctions. Questions arose. Which player was in which team ? Was every team suppossed to play each team once? Or twice? Would the IPL really work ? Would the regional patriotism catch on ? 

A mind boggling media blitz almost answered these questions even before the IPL began. Shahrukh Khan led the way with the Knight Riders, making them an instant neutral man's favourite. And then as the tournament unfolded, I realized it was not just working. It was becoming a runaway success. A BIG one. Jam packed stadiums, heavy sale of team merchandise, superb media coverage and a tele audience glued to their seats.

Why even the BIG DADDY of Indian entertainment, Bollywood, showed its fear and respect to the IPL by having just a single big release over 45 days, Bhootnath, which probably would have flopped even if the IPL wasnt on.

The IPL had everything a cricket fan would love. Close finishes, big sixes, important wickets, superb fielding, controversies and even celebrity appearances. Somewhere in these 45 days , I read an article somewhere which said, that cricket skills are important, no matter what the type of cricket played. Although I am a true blue Test Cricket fan, I sort of tended to agree. I mean, yes, playing out the first session on a green Brisbane pitch, with your team at 6-2, with 5 slips and a gully, facing Mcgrath and Lee is the real stuff but then getting 32 of the last 3 overs with 3 wickets in hand, under lights at the Wankhede is no child's play either. 

Twenty20 has no mercy. If you are a weak fielder, you'll be caught out immediately. If you are a slow scorer, excuse me , this isnt the place for you. If you havent enough control on your line and length, there is no place to hide. And lastly , if you are not a good captain, not a good leader of men, this is the worst place you should be at.

For me, there are a few lasting memories/impressions/observations of the IPL:

- The comeback of the Mumbai Indians under the leadership of Shaun Pollock

-  Jayasuriya's brutal sixes on the leg side

- Shoaib Akhtar's 3 over spell agaisnt Delhi

- Warne couting and then recounting the number of overs his bowlers had each           

   bowled, on his fingers, during a league game

- Harsha Bhogle, sitting in almost the same position during each match, with his elbows either on the table or on the back of a chair

- Shahrukh egging the capacity crowd on at the Eden Gardens

- Preity Zinta's huge smile and high fives

- Shane Warne hitting Symonds in the last over for six to win the match

- Sachin's shocking captaincy for 3 matches in a row

- Dhoni talking to his teammates in a huddle after the final loss

-  Warne raising the winners trophy ( the worst designed trophy I've seen till date)

A points though :

1. All the veterans , had their teams get knocked out. Sachin, Dravid, Ganguly and 

    Laxman. Pure coincidence? Or more proof?

2. No Indian won either the Orange Cap or the Purple Cap.

3. The only non-Indian captain in the IPL,  lifted the trophy.

4. The team that won the trophy, had the least number of locals contributing to the 

     win.

5. From a pool of 25 x 8 that is 200 players, only two hitherto unknown Indian names really shone brightly . Manpreet Gony and Swapnil Asnodkar. Yusuf Pathan was a well recognised player even before the IPL stated. In fact, he was brought for more money than Shane Warne himself.

So what do we do till April 10th next year ? The memory of the public is short. But it seems hard to suggest that the impact of this IPL can ever fade from memory. Mr. Lalit Modi deserves a special mention in the annals of cricketing history.

IPL. Truly, a   Manoranjan ka Baap.