IPL 2020 is being held in United Arab Emirates (UAE) under the shadow of COVID19. This hugely popular sports mega event is sadly being conducted outside its home country. But ignoring that, the live broadcast is super entertainment value for the Indian audience the world over. There are some noticeable changes in the format to cater for social distancing. Risks to the players is huge. But as they say, the show must go on and such an event is important for the economy of the world.
No Handshake of any sorts
Right from the word go, at the time of the toss or when the players are entering the ground, umpires coming in, there are no handshakes. Either it is elbow touches or fist touch. There might be an occasional but impulsive handshake.
No spectators
Drastic times call for drastic measures. One of them is match being played sans any audience. Cricket is not new to empty stands. But this unprecedented.
No cheerleaders
The introduction of concept of cheerleaders in sports in India was new. But it caught on fast and gained popularity. Local culture and fusion dance was experimented instead of just the routine dance numbers. No spectators in IPL 2020, so no cheer leaders. But hey, thats unfair.
Visible changes in celebration mode
IPL is all about excitement, getting close and big smiles. All that will be missing and players and officials will constantly maintain the norms of social distancing. Team management and match officials must be having strict protocols on this.
Lots of billboards
Advertising and TV revenue is going to be the earning options here. So instead of stands where spectators sit, there are giant billboards which advertise. This hides the empty stadium seats and gives more visibility to the advertisers. Since this is the major sporting event of the year, brands will line up.
Less crowded in the players dugout
Dugout is the most visible part of the stadium next to the pitch. Social distancing norms can be seen visible in the players dug out.
Subdued celebrations in players dugout
The tensions and excitement is always there from the first ball. Dugout is where the emotions are on full display. It is just the beginning of the season. As the excitement builds up, the dugout will be the old place it used to be.
No handshakes in presentation ceremony
Post match presentation ceremony is always an interesting affair. IPL saw to it that spectators or the TV audience had many reasons to hang on even if the match is over. As the presentation ceremony moved on, there were a lot of people present and shaking hands was the accepted norm.
Just two people in the presentation ceremony
IPL 2020 is seeing, just two people at the presentation ceremony. The player who is receiving the prize and the commentator who is announcing and both are not in the same frame.
No match ball signing, no special spectator box or VIP box
With no audience, all those special points associated with spectators and cricket are absent.
History of IPL
Cricket activities in various countries are controlled by their respective control boards which are like sports bodies which govern the games. Thought they are private bodies, they are virtually the complete controller of the game in coordination with the ICC which is the apex body. Right from setting the rules to scheduling the tournaments, everything is organised by the control boards. Although cricket gained immense popularity over a period of time, the commercial angle was never exploited by everyone. Control and hence benefits remained under strict control of the cricket boards.
In terms of fan following, cricket is easily the most popular game in the world. Indians all over the world love cricket and their devotion to this game is legendary. It was only a matter of time till a franchise system on the lines of sports clubs all over the world was thought of. Thus began Indian Premier League, the brain child of Board of Control for Cricket in India in 2008.
IPL format was designed on ownership basis for eight teams. These teams are named after eight cities of India. Every team has a home ground or home stadium. Though a simple bidding process, owners first purchased the rights to form teams in 2008. Then they participated in a bidding process to select players. Partially the composition of the team is capped by number of foreign, domestic and local players that any team can have. Thereafter the players are placed for bidding.
Historically speaking, this was not an original idea by BCCI, but was in response to the Indian Cricket League which was launched in 2008. BCCI used its clout and influence to impose heavy fines on players and officials who went to join ICL. As a final blow to ICL, BCCI went ahead to launch the IPL format. Making local players compulsory as part of the team composition and the glitz and glamour was enough to send the right signals. Though at the time of the announcement, BCCI was specific to refute this theory.
Indian Premier League has brought the glitz and glamour to good old cricket. It has brought name and fame to many players. It has created legends. Over the past 12 years it had ups and downs. But what grew is only popularity and more business for everyone.