IPL Reschedules the matches

Latest Update: It’s now confirmed that IPL matches will be hosted by South Africa. The decision took shap after Mr. Modi met Gerald Majola in Johannesburg, after the CSA chief promised high security for the stadiums hosting the matches. However, the IPL matches which were originally slated from April 10 till May 24, have been rescheduled to 17th of April.
Here are the latest IPL updates at your exposure… As the political scene heats up for and against IPL, there are camps coming in picture that are for and against the move… the move to take IPL matches abroad. Off track, in a turn table incidence, England that was a hot favorite as a venue for IPL matches has been succeeded by South Africa. Reason: Expected rainy season in England during the time when IPL has been slotted out can affect at least 70% of matches and an opposition from ICC president David Morgan, who is of the view that high profile IPL matches can affect the ICC twenty 20 match that is to follow just six days after the IPL matches end. Also, the English police have raised a concern over the arrangement of security for IPL matches at such a short notice. But organizing a game in South Africa is also not going to be a cakewalk either. Arrangement of accommodation for so many people, logistics and above all security at such a short notice could be tough. However source claim that CSA chief Majola shares a good rapport with Lalit Modi, and this would help them expedite the final moment decisions, negotiations and quick adjustments.

All Said, how fans are reacting to this latest turn of events…

An extravaganza comprising of the best from all three worlds namely sports, glamour and business was set to have great response from 1.1 billion strong nation and the vice versa is also true. The fans are definitely angry on the loss of a great spectacle named IPL!!! And who are they blaming? Off Course Indian government for letting IPL go out of country. The lack of security does not only raise concerns on India hosting commonwealth games in Delhi but also the concern of living in the country. People have gone to an extent of questioning that should all Indians shift to South Africa or England for security??? However, at the other end, the British of Indian origin are welcoming the move to England at the face of expected rough weather. They are up convincing players that with nearly two million strong Indian crowds, the teams will always feel at home. The top industrialists and business houses of Indian origin have also offered to support the hosting if required. That said, the players including Sourav Ganguly have expressed their disappointment in moving abroad for IPL matches. There have also been reports of demonstration from angry IPL fans near Eden garden against moving the IPL matches abroad.

How is the Business side of IPL faring…?

One of the several reasons for England losing it out was the funds. The travelling charges and the huge hosting fees along with some taxation laws have turned out inhibitive for an England pro BCCI board. If there is so much money involved, there has to be negotiations in place. BCCI has already been dragged to court for signing broadcasting right for ten years with WSG. With IPL moving abroad, there are huge bucks to be made from telecasting rights. The franchisee did support the decision, as even they had made profit out of it last year. With IPL now moving to England or SA, the team owners would now incur 20 to 25% more cost, but then if IPL matches are moved to abroad, most of the franchisee would get back at least what they have invested or may even get into profits. BCCI has decided to pump in 70% of the total cost of moving the league out of country along with subsidized air tickets for Indian players. The cost of travelling of foreign players would be borne by the team owners itself. One camp that’s badly hit is ground advertisers. The local advertisers are surely not happy with the way things have turned out, as they will be losing a great amount of exposure.

There goes an old saying, A loss for someone means an opportunity for other. Look who is smiling… The Bollywood and the Multiplexes. Last IPL season while the big budgets movies had to be postponed, the small budget movies went without much of viewership. This time around, the big budgets are anyways getting postponed, but then the smaller ones are hopeful.


Remain tuned for more on IPL and the latest developments….