Today's inaugural game of the Indian Premier League (IPL) T20 tournament will see last year's champs Chennai Super Kings (CSK) taking on the international Champions League winner Mumbai Indians (MI). However, the real test is not so much CSK versus MI.
It's IPL-5 TV viewership versus the Indian fans' disillusionment with cricket in the wake of the pathetic performance of the national team on its last two overseas tours of England and then Australia. Exactly a year ago, India won the one-day international (ODI) World Cup in Mumbai.
Today , India is not in the top two of any of the formats of the game, whether Test cricket, ODIs or T20. If there is no decline in TV viewership for IPL-5 , the BCCI could rest on its laurels of being the world's richest cricketing board that accounts for over 70% of the global revenues from the game.
However, a good IPL-5 viewership response need not be interpreted by the BCCI as a sign that all is well with Indian cricket . Far from it, going by the pathetic performance in England and Australia. The BCCI could emulate its counterpart in Australia.
The Aussie cricket board calls itself Cricket Australia since its focus is on ensuring that its national team is the best in all formats of the game, with the priority being Test cricket, ODIs and T20, in that order. IPL provides prime-time entertainment during the summer vacations for schools and colleges.
However, the BCCI has to convince millions of Indian fans that it is not just satisfied with being the world's richest cricket board but has the systems in place to ensure that Team India is among the best in all formats .
IPL entertainment and international cricketing success are not incompatible. The revenues generated from IPL could be wisely spent on taking Team India to the top of the league.
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