Feed Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 PRIOR to the Indian Premier League, Zaahier Adams wrote a column about how ecstatic he was that the IPL was heading to South Africa. More... May 27 2009 at 03:59PM By Zaahier Adams Prior to the Indian Premier League, I wrote a column about how ecstatic I was that the IPL was heading to South Africa but expressed caution that the locals would not be able to sustain crowd numbers as the tournament reached the middle stages of its 59-game schedule. I appealed to South African cricket fans to come out in droves to support what was expected, and eventually proved, to be a spectacular event. So right up front, I just want to say "well done" to everybody who attended an IPL game, because the crowds were incredible across the country. Pat yourself on the back too, for without you and your family and friends, the IPL would just have been an unwelcome nuisance. I know some leading players, like Muttiah Muralitharan, have said IPL 2 cannot be compared to IPL 1, purely because of the crowd participation the tournament enjoyed in India in 2008. But, c'mon, Murali, cricket is arguably the third-choice sport of most South Africans behind rugby and football. The fact that Centurion and the Wanderers were overflowing for the semi-finals and final on the same weekend as Loftus Versfeld was sold out for the Bulls' Super 14 semi-final - against the Crusaders, of all teams - is a remarkable achievement! And let's not forget that we are supposed to be in the middle of a recession. While most critics will claim that any marketer worth his or her salt can fill a stadium with a R125 million advertising budget like the IPL made available, the product still needed to be captivating, and this is ultimately what won the fans over. I would not be doing my job, however, if I too got carried with the "Heat" campaign that engulfed the country over the past five weeks. There are many ways in which the IPL can still be improved upon if it wants to continue on its path of global domination. First, whoever IPL head honcho Lalit Modi listens to has to tell him that the game out on the pitch remains his biggest seller. The franchises have spent millions of dollars recruiting the world's best players and that is primarily the reason why any ground is full. The other entertainment must complement the main dish on the menu. Second, the IPL is no longer just an Indian domestic tournament. It has global appeal, and there has to be a bigger number of non-Indian stars within each team compared to the current limit of four. Besides the obvious marketability which goes with this, the overall quality of the product on display will improve. The IPL should also lose its fascination with everything Australian. Yes, there were three Australians in the victorious Deccan Chargers squad and the champions were coached by an Australian, but it must be remembered that two of them were part of what was possibly the greatest team in the history of the game. There are way too many "average" Aussies in the IPL, purely because the majority of the team managements are Australian. That country's depth in talent is not what it was during the Steve Waugh era. Finally, a point that has been made ever so often: can the IPL please find some commentators who have the ability to educate the viewer instead of masquerading as cheerleaders. Jacques Kallis's sister and Co do a good enough job on the perimeter of the field. MY CRICKETER OF THE WEEK Cricket's "bad boys" Herschelle Gibbs and Andrew Symonds combined brilliantly in the IPL final to spur the Deccan Chargers to the title. How I wish I could have been a fly on the wall of the Wanderers changeroom during the Chargers' celebratory fines meeting after that match! zaahier.adams@inl.co.za Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vvvslaxman Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 It was expected. But i would love to see young West Indians like Adrien Bharath taking part in this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sachinism Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 We should have this Aussie in the IPL [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRVAJQ2R284]YouTube - Biggest Six I Have Seen In Twenty-20 Cricket Aiden Blizzard[/ame] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gult Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 Moises Hendriques, Andrew McDonald are few of those average Aussies who got their chances just because of their Aussie coaches Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Sharma Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 I would have loved to see the following players instead of the Henriques, Katichs and McDonalds. Brendon Diamanti Dawid Malan Andre Fletcher Keiron Pollard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowboysfan Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 who is this Bharath i keep hearing about and why didnt the windies pick him for the English tour? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vvvslaxman Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 who is this Bharath i keep hearing about and why didnt the windies pick him for the English tour? Youngest West Indian to make first class debut since Ramnaresh Sarwan. He was 16 thne. He scored a 100 in his very second match. I think even in the recent tour match he made a 100 against England. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Sharma Posted May 29, 2009 Share Posted May 29, 2009 Youngest West Indian to make first class debut since Ramnaresh Sarwan. He was 16 thne. He scored a 100 in his very second match. I think even in the recent tour match he made a 100 against England. Yep. Moreover Lara was impressed by his batting that he gifted him one of his bats and (cricinfo states) was invited by Lara to attend a function at Lord's honouring his record-breaking contribution to the game. Also watch out for Darren Bravo, his backlift and cover drive are very much reminiscent of BCL. Hope they will do well for the Windies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Posted May 29, 2009 Share Posted May 29, 2009 Players i wanna see in next IPL A.Blizzard Joe Denly A.fletcher Shakib Al Hasan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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