Cricket is War

 

 

Will it escalate into an eyeball to eyeball confrontation over eyeballs? Can the beedi smoking, swashbuckling and never say die media czar unleash a bouncer that even the Maratha strong man will find difficult to duck? Or will the two, after a few intense bouts of shadow boxing, smoke the peace pipe and reach a typically ‘Indian’ compromise?

These are literally billion dollar questions. As Indian cricket hurtles from one crisis and embarrassment to another, the promoter of Zee Network, Subhash Chandra has set the cat among the pigeons by announcing the formation of the Indian Cricket League (ICL) that threatens to demolish the vice-like grip enjoyed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) over Indian cricket. Kapil Dev has been roped in as the CEO of ICL, a league that plans to implement the best practices of the football leagues of Europe. There are rumours that Brian Lara, Glenn McGrath and many other top cricketers will join the league. Of course, Kapil paaji is vehement in denying that the ICL will emerge as a rival to BCCI. According to him, the two would complement each other and strengthen Indian cricket.

Kapil Dev has reasons to be diplomatic; he also wears the BCCI hat. But many others are of the opinion that ICL will definitely mean competition for BCCI and the existing regime that controls Indian cricket. Insiders reveal that the Sharad Pawar dispensation has ‘informally’ sent a message to cricketers that the doors of the Indian cricket team will be shut on those who dare to play in matches organised by ICL. If that is so, and if no compromise between Pawar and Chandra is possible, the latter might do a Kerry Packer that will divide Indian cricket. In the 1970s, the Australian media baron had launched a rival cricket league whose matches involving rebel stars like Imran Khan, Greg Chappell and Tony Greig became more popular than the ‘official’ matches. Though the cricket stars were initially banned by their respective boards and Kerry Packer dismissed as a maverick; it is he and his Channel Nine that had the last laugh. Is Chandra planning to do something similar? Says former Indian captain Ajit Wadekar, “Remember Kerry Packer? How we jibed at him in the initial stages? We condemned even the whole idea as a Packer Circus! It has not only changed the world of cricket; but gave it a fresh lease of life. You can see how the Australian cricket has come to be run in a thoroughly professional manner. The time is ripe to consider Goel’s idea and not be conservative. Former cricketer Syed Kirmani puts matters in perspective when he says, “Personally I welcome the concept behind ICL. Competition will make a positive impact on Indian Cricket. According to me, BCCI is a cricket shop. If a competitor like ICL sells good merchandise, people may go there and buy it.”

Drop the jargon and the reality is that Indian cricket is all about big money and every one wanting a fair share of the spoils. For years, Chandra and Zee have nurtured ambitions of getting the telecast rights for matches involving Team India. During the last phase of Jagmohan Dalmiya atthe helm of the BCCI, Zee had outbid rivals like ESPN-Star Sports and Set Max, only to be thwarted by BCCI officials, who refused to give telecast rights to Zee. The entry of Sharad Pawar as the BCCI President hasn’t made much of a difference to Chandra. Telecast rights are now with Neo Sports, a channel promoted by former television producer Harish Thawani. For Chandra, cricket is the vehicle through which he can sustain a successful sports channel as part of his media and entertainment empire. At the moment, the Zee sports channel is one of the weaker links in Chandra’s grand vision; though acquiring Ten Sports has given it a better profile. Nevertheless, an Indian sports channel without cricket will simply not get the eyeballs required to lure advertisers. Most analysts see the launch of ICL by Chandra as a way to break the monopoly enjoyed by BCCI.

Not that the BCCI is going to give up without a bitter fight. Explains legendary spin bowler E.A.S. Prasanna who was treated shabbily by the BCCI during his days, “ICL will not make an impact on Indian cricket. The players who want to represent the country will certainly take part in BCCI events. Only fringe players may play in ICL events and that will not make a major impact on the present structure of Indian cricket”

Yet, Chandra has a historic opportunity. The disastrous loss in the World Cup and an overdose of mediocre cricket has definitely resulted in millions of fans staying away from cricket telecasts. Till the time of writing this, the BCCI hasn’t found a sponsor for the forthcoming series between India and Pakistan. Many are of the opinion that a blinkered BCCI is killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Can Chandra snatch the goose before it dies?