Ok...It doesn't matter that I loathe Lalit Modi....doesn't matter either to him or to me! The IPL, at this point of time, is just absolute crap. 45 days of random teams playing 'hit the ball out of the ground' for all silly reasons- read mainly money. Fan loyalties be damned. How does one explain the crowd in Bangalore 'booing' Kris Srikkanth when he's shown on the screen, while Vijay Mallya got the cheers? For one, personally there is no real emotional connect watching these teams play, though I might cheer or jeer some of the teams. The emotional connect of watching the Indian team play against other teams-that's what has made what cricket and cricketers are in this country.
It was really sad to see Srikkanth being booed. The oft repeated statement in India 'Cricket is a religion' is becoming true. Becos, in India we believe in discriminating people on the basis of caste, creed and religion. Lalit Modi is slowly getting there. Remember the first India Pak tour in 1998, when India lost the match by 12 runs? The whole Chepauk gave a standing ovation to the Pakistan team, that decided to courageously take a victory lap. That was sportsmanship from the crowd and that's what we are known for, except a few incidents here and there- mainly in Kolkata! :P
Now, no one cares if the team that is playing opposite the one they are supporting plays good cricket or not.. No standing ovation, no cheering them. Soon, it will probably come to a stage, where, (hopefully not), fans will come to blows- typical of what happens in England during the football season. And Bangaloreans gave a typical example of that, in words and chants during their match against the Chennai Super Kings. As much as they claim they are forward looking, well educated, the Kannadiga emotions over language seem to come to the fore often, even though chief ministers of both the states might put up statues of poets. Statues are just symbols, they do not reflect the actual situation that exists on the ground. I shudder to think what would have happened if Deccan Chargers matches were played in AP this time around.
On the positive side, there arent many- I was there watching Chennai throw away a quite simple game against the Punjab team at the Chepauk last Sunday. Seated next to me were a couple of senior citizens who had come with their son, daughter-in-law and grandson. I am not sure if their son celebrated every four, every wicket. But the grandmother and the grandson were in full spirit. What amazed me was the way the elderly lady jumped with joy for every possible reason that CSK gave in the match. And that, to me, is probably the only success of the IPL. It has brought senior citizens to the grounds. A simple matter of spending just about 4 hours at the ground, rather than being confined indoors.
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