Missing IPL

I am a cricket buff, and after a month long dose of Twenty 20, I am missing the IPL. It was good to see that the two things that unite India - Bollywood and cricket merge to offer entertainement and serious sports and arise mass hysteria on cricketing grounds. I cannot comment on how Indian cricket esp. the young guns would actually gain, but IPL is an emphatic success. If we consider IPL as a product, this has been one of the most successful product launches in the marketing world of current time; would make Philip Kotler proud of it. I read teams like Mohali, Knight Riders, Dare Devils and Rajasthan Royals are breaking-even and registering profits in the first year itself, what a better business case study! The already rich BCCI is richer, the Sony Entertainement Channel is oozing with profits, kudoos to Lalit Modi and his men behind it.
But we need to note that some significant things have happened behind the scene. The most important: introduction of the corporate world into Indian cricket, and business tycoons of likes of Vijay Mallaya are silently trying to bring the hire and fire policy in the game of cricket, perform or you are kicked out. Charu Sharma was the first to be shown the doors. Rahul Dravid would have been the next, but somehow his skin was saved. There has been a constant talk of professionalism in Indian cricket, I guess this may be a new dawn.
Second, introduction of club culture, will bring together the cricketers of the world. With aggression and zeal to excel, friction between cricketers are at a rise, incidents of "Abbe maa ki" will still remain a part of international cricket. But, I feel cultural exchange will benefit the cricket community at a large. On a lighter note, may be the Australians learn tit bit Hindi, and also accept the fact that the people of third world nations also have balls!!
Third, cricket and Hollywood are religion in India. Noone can deny that IPL has merged the two unifying factors. It has given a common platform for Sachin Tendulkar and Shah Rukh Khan the biggest household names of all Indian homes across the globe. People may crib, fret, state that IPL is about cheer leaders, traditional followers of game may say its only entertainment..people can frame all the negative things..but what emerges is the craze of the people of India. The blend of bollywood peppy number with the cracking sound from the willow will leave its indelible impression on the hearts of the people of India. Incredible India!