Brand IPL
Look at the state of so many sports today. In football, many European clubs are on the verge of bankruptcy. World Cup or not, does anybody even follow hockey anywhere? Name one golfer you know other than Tiger Woods. Tennis is so boring (unless you are a Federer fan). In Formula 1, many of the top manufacturers dropped out. And they had to get Michael Schumacher out of retirement to try and bring in the crowds! And then there is the IPL in stark contrast to all of the above. Consider this: we are not talking of cricket, the sport. Or even T20 in general. Just IPL, an under 2 months extravaganza once a year. Check out IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi’s confidence. He said, “ Our objective is to be the single largest sporting league in the world ”. Such naked ambition is the exact opposite of the traditional British sentiments normally associated with cricket. But can he get there? For starters, he has commercialized cricket to a level never thought possible. The IPL brand is v...