Having unsuccessfully waded off my passion towards all things cricket, I subscribed to the IPL for the second year running. It comes with its own sort of entertainment that viewers back home sorely miss. So, I wanted to write a note on this. I have listed down the top three reasons why I am so glad to have subscribed outside India..
1. No advertisements
For the ordinary Indian in me, cant exphasise how pleased I am with this aspect! This is purely no-frills cricket. We get live feed all the time, without any advertisement (well, almost). This means that the overs still has 6 balls, and we can see which batsmen talk a lot, and which batsmen are content with just having a glove-smack.. And how the fielding captain arranges the field for the next over.
2. Camaraderie
We can get to see surprising camaraderie between players who are made out to be enemies by the media. Hayden-Flintoff focussing on the match at hand, Hayden-Harbajan having a laugh together.. Guys from various countries practicing and joking with each other.. It was encouraging that there is a sportsman at the heart of the increasingly commercial venture called cricket.
3. Inside stuff
We do get the inside story of the commentators and their thoughts and preparations. We get live audio feed too, which means a Richie Benaud pre-pitch report preparation, a Ravi Shastri banter, a Geoffery Boycott sigh, everything is spied on by the unsuspected mic left on. The other funny thing is that we can see every move of the umpires as they leisurely stroll the pitch and outfield in any rain delayed games, like the one today. Usually there is one Indian and one international umpire. The funny thing is that the Indian umpire behaves like a small kid who wouldnt go more than a foot away from the mother. This is in total contrast to the way they behave in local cricket leagues, as if they are God's representative, and everyone should comply to their whim and fancy.
Random Access
The search has just begun !!!
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