Cricket has always been the only rich game in the country- with rights being sold for an unimaginable amount- BCCI has always been flushed with funds. But with the new 20-20 format (in its multiple avtars) coming in- the business of cricket will surely see a lot of changes.
So lemme try amp; put on Nostradamus’ hat amp; predict what all could happen in what was once the gentleman’s game….
– The ones who must be partying really hard are the bookies the ones who play satta through Cricket. For them IPL & ICL is like dream come thru-like they suddenly have 48 hrs in a day to “work hard” & make money :-). Where there were only some 40-50 days of business in a year.. looks like now they can punt- the year round.
– Lot of proven overseas talent will retire early and come to play in the Indian leagues. Gilly’s recent century in 42 balls shows that he is still one-of-the best batsmen even in this young format of game. And am sure the fact that he would earn twice or thrice as much playing 20-20 will be noticed by many others. So what I see happening is this- the overseas players who manage to be consistent amp; would have made a name in the ICC tournaments would retire slightly early and pack bags for India- play 2-3 seasons and buy the perfect retirement home.
– The span county cricketwill lose further sheen as there is not enough money to attract talent. And with little marquee talent, they would make still lesser money and the cycle will go on.
– Indians will be overexposed to cricket. Am not a great follower of the game but I feel that even for the most passionate fan- tracking all the league teams- ICL amp; IPL- & their individual players etc etc will become a pain. This could lead to potential drop in viewership which could mean a drop in advertising rates OR it could lead to monopolisation of the 20-20 format (which both of em are hoping for)
– Ranji will be in doldrums- with so much action the self-proclaimed guardians of this game will align themselves to focus on recruiting talent for the smaller over game at the domestic level. Even the players who would otherwise have been happy to be in a Ranji Trophy match- will now be keen to play for their city team. A Kolkatta player would want to share a moment with ShahRukh as the Knight Rider rather than some non-glam manager for the WB teambr
– Glam quotient (GQ) of cricket will see a lift. Am from Delhi- but my favourite team is the Bangalore Royal Challengers- simple logic- if BRC wins amp; plays till the finals- will get to see more of Katrina 🙂
Same with the cheerleaders- the current dress code being imposed has taken the GQ down by a few serious notches… but am sure this should be back to its opening levels by the next season :-)Coz the media companies do realize that there is a market that is made or lost coz of this also …