IPL 9 leaving Maharashtra thirsty is a perverted accusation
It seems the Indian Premier League can never be freed from glitches and controversies.
As the ninth edition of the premier franchise cricket circus gains momentum, the Bombay High Court's decision directing matches to be shifted out of the state came as a rude shock. Over the last nine years, anyone even remotely associated with the IPL is aware that the tournament is played in peak summer.
The heat is searing, in some venues the humidity is energy-sapping and at a few places there is the dust factor to deal with. Yet, none minds this as the cricket on view is so gripping, and fans are willing to put up with the hardship.
In one fell swoop, last week's decision to shift 13 matches out of Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur came as a huge blow not only to the Mumbai Indians and Rising Pune Supergiants, but cricket fans at large. First things first. Whoever had drawn up the IPL schedule seemed to have given little thought to the history and geography of Nagpur.
In summer, this city boils and it's a common sight to see people moving around with their heads wrapped in towels. Yes, the Vidarbha region has seen the worst drought in decades and for cricket to be played there would have been irrational.
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| Why was the grace period given for the IPL? Matches should have been stopped immediately. |
Coming to Mumbai, to think that there is a huge water problem is blowing things out of proportion. Images of Indian Railways coaches chugging into Latur carrying water made for poignant viewing but that's not the ground reality in Mumbai and Nagpur.
Whoever floated the idea that the IPL will leave people with parched throats if matches were played in Maharashtra was possibly a pervert. Stopping IPL matches does not mean cricket pitches and grounds will not be watered. Maintenance in summer is even more intense and even football grounds at the Cooperage in Mumbai, the racing arena (RWITC) and the synthetic hockey stadia need to be watered whether you play matches or not.
These are bad times for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Bashing the BCCI is the "in-thing" and anyone can get away with it. It is not short of funds even after crores of rupees were blown up in legal wranglings and hiring top lawyers. The problem with the country's apex cricket body is that it doesn't have people with vision.
BCCI president Shashank Manohar himself hails from Nagpur and should know that his city is the worst affected.
Regarding the other wise men in the BCCI, they could have easily decided to contribute Rs 75 crore to the Maharashtra government for drought relief and said let the IPL matches take place.
They could have also chipped in with another Rs 25 crore towards the Central government's drought relief efforts. That way the BCCI would have been seen as a body which cares about corporate social responsibility.
Had the BCCI chipped in for drought relief, it would have been seen as a proactive step and none would have begrudged matches being played in Mumbai and Pune. Or are there wise people in power who think shifting the IPL out of Maharashtra would appease Lord Indra?
Shifting matches will result in huge hassles for the BCCI and the IPL governing council. Yet, what makes it funny is that the court has allowed matches to be played in Maharashtra in April.
If the drought situation was going to improve by stopping the matches, why was the grace period given for the IPL? Matches should have been stopped immediately.
The Met department has forecast a good monsoon for the country starting June/July. The current prediction is that it will be above normal.
Back to shifting matches, one needs to read the data on the drought situation in India. According to official government websites, a total of ten states in India are drought-hit after a bad monsoon in 2015. They include Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Odisha, Jharkhand and certain regions of Uttar Pradesh.
If the Bombay HC's logic is going to be used, IPL matches should not be played in any of these states. And yet we hear that Bangalore is tipped to host the final on May 29.
The problem with people making decisions is they are unaware of reality. In a city like Hyderabad, drinking water comes once in two days in most areas and there is a big rush for it. In a city like Delhi, it has become almost fashionable to use bottled water and buy giant dispensers.
There are so many cities across the drought-hit states where the average population cannot buy even a packet of drinking water. Vizag, which will most probably be the new home base for MS Dhoni's Pune side, also has water problems but it will warmly embrace the side.
One has to also look at the plight of two new teams in the IPL - Gujarat and Pune. They are there for just two years and need a proper home base. Apart from settling down as teams, they need to connect with a fan base. Surely, the Pune side is going to take a beating as a result of matches being shifted out.
The best part about IPL 9, now into its second week, is that amidst all this turmoil, matches are being played with the same intensity and the public is loving it. Be it inside the arenas or in front of television sets.
(Courtesy of Mail Today.)