The Indian Premier League

The Indian Premier League promises to change the face of Cricket, in a good way or bad, only time will tell.

We have eight city-centric teams sold to franchisees to run as a business who in turn have purchased players from the BCCI's sub-committee, IPL and are now trying to create their teams around them. There is a compulsion of 4 players in a team who have to be from the catchment area, a minimum of 4 U-22 players who must be a part of every team and only 4 international players in a team for a particular match. Loads of other things!!


At this stage, there are more questions than answers and there are quite a few genuine concerns voiced by a lot of Ranji Trophy players and other junior cricketers.

• Primarily, what happens to those players who represent a particular state in which a team is not based?
  
• Is performance in Ranji Trophy or any other tournament for that matter any criteria for selection?
• Once a player becomes a permanent member of a club team, does he even require to play Ranji Trophy or domestic cricket?
• Shouldn't it be compulsory for all players of Indian origin who are part of a club team to have been a regular member of any of the state sides for the particular year?
• Shouldn't the player playing in IPL require a NOC from the state Association?
• Shouldn't the players from a state where a team is not based be available for any of the 8 teams and not be available only for the team in the catchment area? Take for example, a random name, Prateek Panwar, who is an U-19 player who scored a triple century in the U-19 Cooch Behar Trophy playing for Haryana. If Prateek wishes to play, first, the IPL Mohali team has first right on him and only if they dont wish to play him will he have an option of playing for another side. What happens if IPL Mohali does not even approach him?
• What if a player playing in the IPL breaches ICC's code of conduct? There seems to be no match fee:)! It was just a bazaar! Where are the rules?
  

I have no doubt about the commercial viability of this product and about the marketing skills of the people in the committee that is responsible for IPL but I strongly feel that some changes are required to address the concerns (quite a few of them, even apart from these) of the players and the system that is responsible for churning out these players else one might see the dilution of any interest in the Ranji Trophy, the premier tournament (Sorry IPL) for Cricket in India. IPL can and should be used to enhance the value and quality of Ranji Trophy and it is imperative to do so for the future of Cricket in India.