IPL’s Twenty20 is taking cricket to greater heights

The Indian Premier League (IPL) heads into its grand finale this Sunday leaving no doubt about its impact on the cricketing world.

The IPL has been a major success so far. It has provided exciting cricket, plenty of entertainment and its quick finish has ensured millions of television viewers and thousands of spectators.

The response in India has been tremendous. Everything almost comes to a standstill during the duration of the matches. Restaurants and sports bars fill up with eager watchers.

There are many new converts to the game both young and old. India’s avidly watched prime time television serials have found their ratings down as the IPL has taken over most households.

There are more discussions on Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shane Warne than scheming mothers-in-law. Cricket has become the mantra.

The cheerleaders and Bollywood stars have added to the glamour. The presence of team owner movie stars Shah Rukh Khan and Preity Zinta at the matches have ensured more attendance.

The government and the cricket authorities have tried to act spoilsport. Cheerleaders have been forced to cover up at some venues and Shah Rukh Khan was told to stay off the team dug out.

Hopefully such stupidity will be avoided at future tournaments. The government should be looking at their own corrupt individuals instead of preaching morality to people who have no objections to having a bit of fun.

The cricket authorities have enough issues to tackle than telling Shah Rukh Khan to lay off from cheering his team.

The IPL has confirmed India as the number one cricket crazy nation. However, there is fear that the success of the IPL may prove detrimental to other forms of cricket in the country.

The 50-over format has always drawn crowds in the country. But post-IPL, the fans may lose patience with this form of the game as they will have to spend double the time watching it.

Fours and sixes may not rain like in the 20-over format. The five-day Tests have always struggled for spectators and this may take a bigger hit.

The Indian fans have always been fickle in nature. The impact of the IPL may prove negative in the short term.

Other countries also fear that they may not be able to match India in organising similar 20-over tournaments.

The scale of the glitz and glamour provided in India will be difficult to follow. In many other countries, cricket is not the number one game as in India.

However, the IPL has revolutionised cricket in a big way. It has got the staid, old fashioned cricket authorities in the world thinking in a big way.

The IPL has confirmed that cricket can be as exciting as football and tennis. IPL’s Twenty20 is taking cricket to greater heights