Cricket is just a sport, the IPL just another occurrence, and it had to be moved back with lives at stake. It is unfair to quantify the financial loss, considering the current situation.
IPL is more than money, it is India’s gift to world cricket, and if there were a prize for the most impactful invention of cricket since 2000, it would win hands down. In 13 years after it began, the grammar and economics of cricket changed by the IPL.
IPL Contributes To Economy:
Keep aside the glitz and glamour. IPL is cricketing because of the results. Fans love superstars Gayle / De Villiers / Malinga / Dhoni / Raina and Kohli’s brilliant skills. IPL offers impressive numbers; the league is estimated at several billion, all franchisees are assured income, and the value of media rights is ~62 crores per game.
Every year, teams spend a whopping ~100 crores on players and support staff, and everybody — BCCI, coaches, clubs, radio stations, sponsors, fans, international boards — is content.
How IPL Is Source Of Economy:
It’s a great TV product, and smartly packed live cricket is delivered home at a prime time through 32 cameras. IPL has made a massive impact on cricket, bringing it into the professional sports world and putting it on a new path. Therefore, the BCCI flag flaunts boldly in world cricket.
The IPL formula (of franchises and international players) is photocopied by both countries, replicated with minor modifications. The tremendous influence of the IPL is evident in India as well. State units within BCCI want IPL games not just for the R1 crore per game they get.
The games are generating a sensation, attracting exposure, and offering amazing networking opportunities. This is why the governments of the state (Assam, Chhattisgarh) are going out of their way to attract IPL games.
Team leaders are prominent, and their (informal) opinions bear significant weight, but there is no formal process to involve them in governance.IPL is on autopilot after 12 successful seasons, firmly developed as part of the Indian Summer (placed in the window between exams and the monsoon). Top international stars are signed up for action, and the domestic cricket in India is an audition to get an IPL deal.
Shane Warne, Kevin Pietersen, and Nasser Hussain thank IPL for changing the mindset of young Indian cricketers and swiftly monitoring their international cricket progress.
Ravi Shastri described IPL as the best physio in the world because everybody reports fit. National selectors keep a close watch on players who succeed in pressure situations.
There is also a bit of reverse swing as IPL is putting Test cricket in the shade. Sunil Gavaskar recently challenged the logic of arranging overseas tours of India. A team during the domestic season, questioning why these are not happening during IPL. No one answered, but the response is known to all.
Presently IPL has been halted due to the outbreak of coronavirus scare, and it is hoped that it would be back on tracks again.
