IPL 2012- Low TRP again! Why?

IPL 2012 is in its middle stages now and the viewership reports suggest that this time around TV viewership has been worse than last year. Last year IPL began just after India's World Cup victory. India had been playing cricket continuously and low viewership was attributed to the cricket overdose. But this time around there was no World Cup, neither did the Indian team gift its fans a flurry of victories. So why even this year the IPL is staring at low TRP's?

The problem of Loyalty- I think one of the main reasons for people's dwindling interests in IPL is due to the lack of loyalty to a particular team. People do not follow their city team as intensely as they do with the Indian cricket team. Unlike the football's English Premier League where team loyalties are rampant, there are nos such loyalties in the IPL. I am a Delhi boy but it does n't matter to me whether Delhi wins or loses. Infact I would rather love to see Dada's Pune or Dravid's Rajasthan taking the title. Even people around me don't bother about their city's performance. I don't fight with my Mumbai friend over our IPL teams even though some of my mates do fight over the performances of the Premier League football teams. Also apart from the first season players are seldom seen in their regional teams. Punjabi boys Harbhajan and Yuvraj play for teams from the South while Delhi lads Kohli and Gambhir too are turning out for different teams. Bengali Hero Ganguly plays for Pune while Bangalorean Dravid plays for Rajasthan. So how can one expect the fans to stick to their regional teams? What I mean is that India has still not found its loyalties for different cities.

Too many days of non-stop cricket- IPL goes on for about 55 days with matches on each day including a double header every alternate day. Is n't that too much? I mean holding even an ardent cricket lover for 55 days is tough let alone capturing non-cricket watcher's market. To be honest the IPL has now become the living room's last option when nothing else watchable is being telecast on the TV. People nowadays only check out the scores or start watching the match in its last stages when the match is heading towards an exciting finish. But apart from that nobody in their busy lives have got the time to catch 2 back to back cricket matches everyday. The stadiums might look full and the atmosphere "electric" but thats due to the fact that cricket matches do not come very often in one's city which compels fans to throng the stadiums to enjoy themselves.

The Brand IPL is definitely going down and something needs to be done to keep it going. Afterall the IPL has had some good effects too. The IPL has put India firmly on the Global cricketing map. Those English and Aussie players who did n't like to come to India are now dying to play in the cash rich league. Youngsters are getting opportunities and exciting young players are coming up every year who can serve the nation. And then an Indian feels proud when he sees his country as the center of attraction for the right reasons.

Rajasthan Royals- Going Like Season 1!

So the slambang cricket is here again! Indian Premier League- cricket's moneyball has started spinning again. T20 matches every night are giving Indian fans respite from a disastrous last season. Its been 4 days since the IPL 2012 began. Each team has played a couple of games. And in these 4 days, its the Rajasthan Royals who look the most impressive and balanced side. The 2 wins revived memories of season 1 when Rajasthan who were written off for not having star players came back to win the title.

This time too Rajasthan are short of star players. But the young Indian players are making a mark. In 2008 they were skippered by the Spin Wizard Shane Warne but this time its the Wall, Rahul Dravid. While its still very early days in the 50 day long affair but so far Rajasthan have looked good. Both the purple cap and the Orange cap are with them. One of the main reasons for their success has been their wise spending.

They did n't spend oodles of money on big players. They spent their money on cheap yet quality players who can contribute. Players like Owais Shah, Brad Hodge and the West Indian Cooper are suited for this format. Obviously having 3 good players is better than having just one big player for the same amount of money. They have some exciting Indian players too like Menaria and Rahane. Their team might not look too good on paper like those of Kolkata Knight Riders or Kings XI Punjab. But they have players for every department. They have a good allrounder, good solid openers and a decent middle order.

Rajasthan is under no pressure pretty similar to the first season. In both their wins, they already have shown their batting and bowling capability. In the first match they racked up a huge total with a good opening partnership and in the next match the middle order came to the party. So all in all Rajasthan looks like the most balanced and complete side and they have a very calm, composed and cricket's greatest student as their leader.

While many teams in the past have gone down after winning the first few matches but there is no reason why Rajasthan Royals can't continue their winning ways throughout the tournament.

Bangladesh- Minnows No Longer!

Pakistan have won the Asia Cup but it was Bangladesh who won everyone's hearts as they lost a terribly close final match against Pakistan. The Match was testimony to what Bangladesh have done throughout the tournament. They fought hard till the end but could n't just cross the line. They refused to die down even when the odds were against them. In the end you would have to say, Bangladesh has enhanced its reputation after this tournament. So has Bangladesh finally shed its "Minnows" tag? From now on, can we consider them a top team who can beat anybody anytime anywhere?

I think yes the time has come finally.

Bangladesh have surprised the top teams many a times but they did that very inconsistently. But in the Asia cup they showed that they can perform consistently too. In all the 4 matches they ran the opposition close and on 2 occasions they managed to cross the line. When they won against India, many said it was an upset. But they followed it up with a comfortable win against Sri Lanka and suddenly no body was calling it an upset. Winning 2 matches back to back against the world champions and the runner up cannot be a fluke. And they almost won against another former world champion on 2 occasions.

Bangladesh have so far played 262 ODI's and have won 72 out of them losing 188 in the process. They have beaten every test playing nation at least once. They have beaten Australia, Pakistan and South Africa once, England twice, India and Sri Lanka thrice, West Indies 4 times and New Zealand 5 times. And these are the top teams in international cricket. In the last 2 years, Bangladesh have played 41 ODI's winning 17 and losing 24 of them. Out of the 17 wins, 9 wins have come against the top 8 teams mentioned above including a 4-0 whitewash of New Zealand.

Bangladesh have found immense self belief. They now feel they can win against any opposition under any circumstances. Whether they are chasing a big target like the 290 against India or they are restricting the run flow against the world's best batsmen. And much of this has to do with the fearless players in their team. Players like Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al Hasan, Mashrafe Murtaza, Mushfiqur Rahim can match with the best in the world. Tamim Iqbal gives them flying starts and takes the attack to the opposition, then there is a terrific all rounder in Shakib who bowls and bats equally well and is Bangladesh's best player. Rahim can hit a few towards the end while Murtaza is another genuine bowler who can also bat a bit. Bangladesh have emerged as a brilliant fielding unit and you rarely see misfields or spilled catches. Their spinners Razzak, Mahamudullah and Shakib strangulate the opposition in the middle overs.

Bangladesh after this performance have definitely sent a clear message all around the world that they no longer are pushovers who cannot beat the top teams. They are now a force to reckon with. But Bangladesh would now have to do this consistently. Their reputation is solely in their hands and their next objective should be to beat a top team in a test match.