It's taken 73 games, but we're finally here. Seventy-three. Chew on that number for a moment. The IPL has had 50% more games than World Cup 2011, which was faulted for being too long. It's had 16 games more than the first three World Cups combined. The IPL has tested viewer appetite and player endurance to the limit, in the process turning the less-is-more norm on its head. The audience has spoken: there is only so much cricket India can take. The players have started breaking under the strain: several overseas signings flew home early, the India squad going to West Indies is severely depleted. Seventy-three is a big number.
The verdict, though, can wait until No. 74 is out of the way. An exciting knockout phase is capable of glossing over all the faults of a bloated tournament, and IPL 2011 has been fortunate on that front - Bangalore's hammering of Mumbai in the virtual semi-final notwithstanding. The impact of a good, well-contested final can be even more far-reaching. The success of the most recent World Cup, and the equally resounding failure of the one that preceded it, are quite closely linked to the manner in which the final moments of the respective events panned out. For three years running, the IPL final has been a closely fought game. Can 2011 continue the trend?
Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore are opponents capable of producing that gripping denouement. Going by where they finished in the league table, they are the two best sides in the tournament. Both sides have been incredibly consistent, which is a considerable achievement in a tournament that goes on forever. Skeptics will point at Bangalore's dependence on Chris Gayle, and Chennai's dependence on home advantage. The former is a disservice to Virat Kohli and Bangalore's well-rounded bowling attack, while the latter betrays a poor grasp of the roller-coaster ways of Twenty20 - winning seven games on the trot at the same venue in this format is no mean achievement, regardless of the conditions.
Chennai and Bangalore have a storied Twenty20 history: in the one season when Chennai did not make the final (2009), it was Bangalore who stopped them in the semis. Chennai returned the favour in Champions League 2010, hustling their South-Indian neighbours out of contention. This year, they have traded blows three times already, with Chennai leading 2-1.
IPL 2011 has thrown everything at us, and the feeling at the end of it all is one of gluttonous excess. A cracking final, witnessed by a full house, and featuring good cricket (and that doesn't always mean scores of 200 from both sides) might be a good way to sign off. A Super Over finish will be "just what the doctor ordered".
No comments:
Post a Comment