New Delhi: After days of media speculation, the Board of Control for Cricket in India unveiled its pet project—the Indian Premier League—the Twenty20 offering to revitalise domestic cricket in India in a star-studded event in the Capital on Thursday.
The IPL is also the first attempt by the BCCI at the ‘franchisee model’ followed by its footballing and several other counterparts across Europe and America. And the richest sporting body in the world was understandably influenced by the English Premier League model’s money-minting capabilities.
And with star Indian players—captain Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble, with legendary Australian duo of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne and former New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming pledging support, they have also among their ranks stalwarts to bank on.
Since the Zee Telefilms powered Indian Cricket League was announced a few months ago, the BCCI had been thrown off kilter, and its presence in the minds of the rival camp was evident. "Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the Indian Cricket League," fumbled BCCI Vice-President Lalit Modi while unveiling the IPL’s logo, and after bouts of hysteria, corrected himself to the Indian Premier League.
But the air of confidence in the BCCI men was apparent. The announcement was made in the presence of almost all the full members of the ICC, the associates as well as the affiliates, and was made clear that the tournament—set to kickstart in April 2008, will culminate into yet another revelation—the UEFA Champions League-style Champion’s Twenty20 League—featuring domestic participation from all ICC full member countries, taking domestic cricket to the world stage.
Speaking on the occasion, former BCCI president I S Bindra said, "The timing of the launch of the Indian Premier League couldn’t have been better with the ICC World Twenty20 currently on in South Africa. There were several attempts at reviving domestic cricket in India which failed. But during (President) Sharad Pawar’s tenure, it has changed."
The Indian Premier League will aim at mobilising corporate participation, wherein an entrepreneur will own a local cricket team. He could, in turn, buy and sell players in true EPL fashion (Beckham remained the light of their eyes, and not even a certain Sachin Tendulkar while citing the example), also enabling the real worth of cricketers for the first time. Also, the local Delhi team could then be seen listing in the market, much like Manchester United. The teams will vye for a whopping $3 million in prize money.
Besides international and domestic presence and in the local sides, players will be picked from the under-21 level. Modi said that the IPL aims at boosting cricketing infrastructure in the country "to adapt to the changing times, to adapt to the vast demographics." And to add to the hype, he added that it will be the ideal platform for players and officials to ensure a bright future for international cricket, and provides 'late career opportunities for international cricketers'.
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Yet, the entity remains wholly owned by the BCCI, and the 'Governing Council of India' will oversee its execution. Lalit Modi will head the seven-member IPL Governing Council, including I S Bindra, Chirayu Amin, Arun Jaitley, Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar, Rajiv Shukla in the Committee.
But the prerogative remained the ICC—President Ray Mali was the Chief Guest—and it was clarified that international players’ priority will be to play in international fixtures, and not interfere with the Future Tours Programme.
It was also revealed that the plans for hosting such a tournament was in the pipeline since more than a year, and that BCCI President Sharad Pawar had discussed the plans with Mali beforehand, in a meeting in January.
The BCCI, though, has made its intentions clear, that rivalry won’t be tolerated, even though Modi was polite about the ICL’s existence. He clarified that the ICL signings will not be entertained by the BCCI, and the Board’s stance towards them remains unchanged.
While India awaits the start of the Indian Cricket League in October which has its own set of stars in Brian Lara, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Lance Klusener et al, the BCCI aims at starting the IPL’s first innings in April 2008, consisting of eight teams to start with divided into two groups of four, 59 matches spread over six weeks, to be held in the evenings and on a weekday-weekend basis.
As the BCCI aggression subsided, it was time for the Indian skipper to take over. "If we can’t make it happen, then Twenty20 won’t be a successful venture at all," Rahul Dravid said, reminding the audience of the galaxy of stars present. "Youngsters will get a chance to play with a guy like McGrath, or a young captain will be seen discussing strategies with Stephen Fleming."
Claiming that the event was in the pipeline for a long time, Modi was understandably asked whether any corporate had actually come forward for participation. "Our objective was to announce it. But we have over 30 individuals and companies who have shown interest," was Modi’s retort.
It certainly isn’t a knee-jerk reaction to the ICL. It seems that the BCCI has all its bases covered. Pakistan Cricket Board, Cricket Australia, Cricket South Africa and the England and Wales Cricket Board have already given it the green signal, with fellow Test playing nations waiting in line.
But what indeed looks clear is the fact that the BCCI hasn’t fired blanks. They have thrown the gauntlet back at the ICL by getting the nod of the ICC and boards of member countries.