It’s a little after nine in the evening and a small crowd of techies has gathered inside a pantry in UST Global at Technopark, their eyes glued to a television screen, as they watch an Indian Premier League (IPL) match unfold. Cheers, however, soon turn into despair as the Delhi Daredevils score an easy victory over ‘home’ team Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
Across town, in his home in Malayinkeezh, techie Praveen Thankayyan too is feeling rather despondent, even though CSK will retain its position on top of the IPL leader board. “Well, the loss is a bit personal because it will affect the standing of my ‘virtual’ team in the IPL Fantasy League game,” says Praveen. Techie Sajeesh V.P., meanwhile, is rather pleased at CSK’s surprise loss. “It means my favourite team Kolkata Knight Riders inches closer to the top spot and perhaps the championship!” he says.
Who said people are losing interest in IPL? In Technopark, at least, the tournament seems to be alive and kicking with many techies rushing home most evenings to catch their favourite teams at play or, at least, keenly following the games online.
Praveen, who works as a process lead in an MNC, is one of them. “It’s entertaining because anything can happen in IPL. One minute you think your team is winning and next moment their fortunes can go for a toss. For a genuine cricket fan there’s nothing more thrilling than that,” he says. Kiran R., a senior software engineer, agrees. “The key is to not think of IPL as the same as first class cricket; don’t attribute the same values to it and don’t analyse it on the same scale. Then, you’ll enjoy it and relate to it,” adds Kiran. Sports buff Binu S. Kumar, a senior software engineer, too finds it entertaining. “Watching IPL is a good way to kick back and relax after a hard day's work. Plus, fantasy IPL, in which we get 'own' players is really cool and it gives us an opportunity to keep track of matches even if we can't watch them all. Besides, it gives us a personal stake in each game. Most of my friends and colleagues are also keen on Fantasy IPL.”
Vinu Balakrishnan, a test engineer who is also part of his company’s cricket team, believes that IPL, now in its seventh edition, has finally settled into its groove, overcoming all the controversies that had been plaguing it for some time. “ Not everyone would watch every match, given the sheer number of matches, but most cricket buffs would keep themselves in the loop on what's happening. This season, finally, the bowlers are getting due traction. For an amateur like myself who plays a lot of cricket there is much to learn from the shots taken and balls bowled in the IPL.”
What appears to have endeared people the most to the tournament is that they believe IPL has done wonders for Indian cricket - and world cricket too, for that matter. “One of the best things about IPL is that it has become a platform for new talent. Take Pravin Thambe of Rajasthan Royals, for example, who was plucked out of obscurity - at age 41! If not for IPL we would never have had the opportunity to see him play,” says Praveen. Vinu throws in other names. “Sarfaraz Khan of Royal Challengers Bangalore, the city's own Sanju Samson, and Aussie star James Faulkner came to the limelight through Rajasthan Royals...And the wonderful thing is that all these youngsters are getting the opportunity to play with top class players such as Chris Gayle, M.S. Dhoni and A.B. De Villiers right at the beginning of their careers, hitherto unheard off in cricket! Also, IPL has paved the way for the comeback of Indian cricketers such as Shikar Dawan, Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja,” he says.
Kiran adds that IPL has been beneficial for Indian sports in general. “It’s because of IPL’s success that we now have a similar leagues for hockey, football and kabaddi – all of which have in turn become successful, raising the level of Indian sport,” he says.
Now, that's what you call a sixer.
