7 reasons why I don’t like the IPL

The IPL is cricket’s current big story.  It is everywhere, be it tales of glitz and glamour, reports of players, coaches and captains or stories about the move from India to South Africa.

Personally, I couldn’t give a hoot.  Here are seven reasons why:

1. Plasticity – The IPL is the cricketing equivalent of those people who have so much cosmetic surgery that it becomes hard to spot the remaining “original” bits amongst the plastic.  Ultimately, the exterior may have a form of beauty, but the interior is pig-ugly.  I am not interest in the celebrity of it all, nor can I be bothered with cheerleaders or loud music in between the action.  I am interested in Cricket.
2. Money – Sport is should be about the contest, the battle of wills, one player’s ability pitted against the next.  The IPL is built around, and based upon, money and the gathering of it.  I have no problem with players earning a lot of money for their skills, but there comes a point where you have to say “too much”.  When a player is signed up for a team for two weeks, and has no involvement beyond that, the amount of personal satisfaction they can gain is limited to personal achievement rather than that of team success.  The rest is about money.
3. Protectionism – The IPL is aggressive to a point of being psychotic.  It is one thing to protect your business interests, but quite another to actively attempt to destroy the careers of players who engage with the opposition.  By classing the ICL as a “rebel” competition, the IPL and the BCCI have created themselves a smokescreen to use as justification for their actions.  Lately, their vendetta has expanded to include the media activities of current or former ICL players.
4. Meaning – Unless you are from a city in India that boasts an IPL franchise, it is difficult to find a reason to take an interest in any given team.  Is it because of the players that make up that team?  Is it due to the team colours?  Is there some other connection with that team, such as a holiday destination?  For me, there is none of these reasons to encourage me to follow any IPL team.
5. Format – Twenty20 is not a format that especially inspires me.  I like the strategy of a four or five day match, the ebb and flow and the almost limitless possibilities for surprise.  Twenty20, whilst not without its excitement, is all about big hits and fast runs.  This might test a players technical skills, but it does less to examine their mental strength or skills or endurance and concentration.  Imagine if FIFA decided that for the next World Cup they would skip the boredom of ninety minutes and just have penalty shoot-outs instead.  That is what T20 is to me.
6. Sensationalism – Twenty20, and the IPL in particular, embodies that 21st century fad of sensationalism – the idea that gratification can only come from having our senses bombarded with bright flashing lights.  In reality, and sorry to sound overly philosophical here, true enjoyment in a sporting sense comes from the opposite.  Cricket is at its best when it is pared down to the battle between bat and ball – in other words, a minimalistic contest reduced to the fundamentals.
7. History – I like my sports to have history and tradition.  I like to think about who the best players have been over the decades.  I like to see records broken, milestones achieved.  The IPL has one season to fall back on in this regard.  Admittedly, all sporting contests have to start somewhere, but as far as I am concerned it is not the same.

Credit must be given where it is due to the IPL and it’s creators for spotting an opportunity and taking advantage of it.  But, that said, it is still not for me.