Does Cricket still exist for the common man?

Former BBC journalist James Astill is perhaps the only one who has probed this question in the past. Through his book on Cricket – ‘The Great Tamasha’, Astill was able to highlight how politics and corruption have made its way into the grand scheme of things into a sport that is seemingly open for one and all. The book also gives a detailed account of the frailties of the Indian Premier League. While most would attack Astill on his accounts, most of the facts come from a first-hand source.

Lalit Modi, now living his life in London, has seen it all in the IPL. The cricketers who now play in the league owe Modi a great deal for making them men with extremely rich pockets. So rich that some have even declined central contracts from their countries to play for franchises across the world in the IPL. Of course, there are some of the saintly cricketers who have stayed loyal, but, it is hard to decline such offers.

In recent times, cricket coverage has been one of the most effective tools in terms of sports propagations. The propaganda has seen the BCCI perhaps the most powerful cricket board in recent times, has come out with a cocktail bevy of media analysis. Of this, what is commendable is the fact that the BCCI has indeed worked quite a bit to get to where they are. Corrupt or not, Indian cricket has come through what was perceived as its infancy in the 1990s to what is a finished product of the Indian cricket team.

There is absolutely no dearth of talent in the Indian cricketing scene at the moment. I can guarantee it. Just a few days back, there was little Rudra who was playing for a junior varsity side in New Delhi. His stature is not more than the stumps. If one watches closely, it is possible to even notice the bails of the stump. Even the square-leg umpire made a quick stop to greet young Rudra. He had gotten the joke as well. But, what he had seen was three deliveries of simply ‘amazing shot-making’. In a nutshell, it was straight out of a textbook, perhaps written by the best technicians of the game.

While the cocktail of Bollywood and cricket was proving to be the binding force for almost half a billion Indians, a few thousand miles away is Kenya, once a cricketing powerhouse. The road from Mombasa to Nairobi can be one that runs a few hundred kilometers. There is also every chance of a militant attack on an envoy moving across. Also, on the long and winding highway road lies the sinister Jaffery Cricket Club.

Once a center for cricketing excellence in Kenya, it has produced some wonderful players over the years. Remember Aasif Karim, the man who momentarily made Australia grovel in the 2003 Cricket World Cup? Well, he is a product of the Mombasa-based cricket academy. Jarrod Kimber also went on to christen Karim as ‘The master of Mombasa’. At the moment, Kenyan cricket is on the fringes of survival. A dearth of ICC funds for development, something they used to receive all those years ago has dried up.

Kenya is a perfect example of a ‘Cricketing Nation’ that once was. I wouldn’t go so far as stating that there is an extinction of cricket in the nation, but, all that is left off the Jaffery Club is a building and a bit of gear, perhaps denuded from whatever inventory was worth any amount of money. Unfortunately, as far as the ICC is concerned, there is also not much they can do about it given that their efforts are hamstrung by the various boards presently knocking on the doors of the council.

In a previous article, I had highlighted the fact that the ICC does very little for the smaller nations looking to make it big in the international level. Although it got me a lot of flak, there was one thing I did not address in that particular post. Many cricket enthusiasts like myself love watching the so called ‘minnows’ play. Unfortunately, the chance only comes once in four years. Now, with the ICC shrinking the World Cup to a 10-team affair, we would get to see them much lesser I reckon.

However, those playing the game in Afghanistan on the rough patches of land affiliated with the Taliban, those playing in whatever is left of the Jaffery Cricket club, and the rest of us watching the sport and writing their opinions on developments have something in common. The question that comes up is a simple one. Does Cricket still exist for the common man?

In this context, the common man used to refer to those watching the game. Now, a majority of the Associate Members are also a part of this ordeal. When the Afghanistan players defeated the West Indies at the Wankhede Stadium in the World T20, most of the Afghan players had bigger smiles on their faces while taking selfies with Chris Gayle, who was more than happy to flaunt his fame around the Afghan players who had played out of their skins to complete a win.

In India, the official broadcaster of most of the cricket is one entity. Barring the IPL, all matches are telecast on the Star TV Network. Of course, one would certainly admire their coverage as well as analysis, something that keeps viewers captivated, the amount of cricket being telecast is quite effectively bringing in a torrid boredom.

In fact, this was the conversation I had with a colleague who told me that he could not watch matches that were not telecast on the Star Network. This effectively means that he would watch cricket predominantly played by the Indians. And, with the amount of cricket being played, it satisfies the average Indian fan. However, what many fail to realize is the fact that there is a dominant minority of fans who would like to enjoy what they watch.

In all honesty, a ‘dominant minority’ really does not enjoy watching India playing cricket anymore. Too much is indeed too bad. There are some of us (who do exist, mind you) who would much rather watch Hong Kong take on Nepal or maybe even Ireland playing against Afghanistan. I am not saying that would be more enjoyable, but watching cricket played by common men just adds that much more romanticism about the ordeal.

Whether the ICC takes a call on this or not remains to be seen. But, for all those reading this, if not anything, think about the following at the very least. Most people watch sport and make case studies about the ‘David v Goliath’ encounters. The 2003 World Cup saw an entire host of upsets, something that boosted the morale of the country as well as television ratings. If there are only 10 teams in the 2019 World Cup, what are the chances of an upset? Moreover, what is the whole point of sport if it is going to be predictable?