Sports Betting Articles
Indian Cricket League
By Akram Saqib
INTRODUCTION
Sporting activities are a multi million dollar business all over the world. Sports are the 11th largest producer and contributer of the GDP in the USA. Sports and games related activities and business are a proven tool to boost economies. These are a very successful vehicle for advancing commercial interests. The official of the ICL say that they have taken this step to invite business concerns to go ahead in achieving this goal.
BACKGROUND
Cricket is a national CRAZE and has achieved the status of a religion in India. It has become a symbol of national pride. Cricket is the only sport where INDIA has the potential to become a champion. BCCI contracts about 20 players only and these 20 players are not enough to produce high quality cricketing persona. Reserve bench production is only possible by upgrading the domestic cricket. The formation of ICL will help the youngsters to be able to bear the rigors of world cricket.
SPORTS CREATE IMPRESSION Sports are an area where unswerving performance and supremacy creates perfect impression of a nation. They want India to attain the status of a global giant through sports. The main aim of ICL is to prepare a pool of valuable cricketers that are able to become champions through diligence and display of good aggressive cricket
CREATION OF INDIAN CRICKET LEAGUE
Discovery, Diligence and Display are the raison d, tre of the Indian cricket league.These are the ambitions behind the first private professional international cricket league; The Indian Cricket League (ICL). AIMS OF THE LEAGUE
1= To minimise the wide differences
The first aim of the league is to minimise the wide differences in facilities provided to the national team and the local or regional teams. These difference are a major hinderance in the way of the youngsters to show their real worth. the regional players lack facilities and chances to become icons of cricket only due to lack of funds and guidance. The ICL will fill up this gap.
2=To create nursery of players
The regional cricket boards only have the BCCI as a provider of funds, infrastructure and creating nursery. The regional players are devoid of all the benefits of possessing extraordinary talent. The ICL would statrt development of cricket from grass root level.
3=To make the Indian cricket better
>>Performance of the Indian team in the recent past was not up to the mark .The proponents of the ICL claim that it was only due to the nonavailability of the proper resources and facilities to the players. They would provide the players with both these things.
4=To satisfy the lovers of the cricket
The Indian cricket fans worship their heroes and especially the cricketers .The poor performance is only due to the political influence. The ICL promises to keep the politics and cricket at arms length so that the fans would be able to watch good cricket.
CONSPIRACY THEORIES BEHIND ITS CREATION
The antagonists are not of the same opinion as is put forwarded by the officials of the ICL. They have their own arguments.The first and foremost argument in this regard is that Essel group wants to exploit the Indian fans who are disappointed by the performance of the board and infrastructure of the BCCI.
Essel group is the partner of the ZEE telefilms which was denied the telecast of the World cup 2003 and wanted to take revenge from the BCCI. The Essel group is doing all this only for the profit making and took initiatives to form ICL. TheBCCI denied them the cricket content so they had to create their own content. This league has a prize money of $ 1 million for the winner.
Indian team failures have led to minimum earnings to the broadcasters, advertisers, sponsors and travel & tour operators. The ICL has planned to utilize the opportunity to make both of the ends meet.
ESTABLISHMENT AND STRUCTURE OF ICL
The ICL was set up with a Rs. 1 billion, and initially comprised of six teams.The number of teams would be increased to sixteen in next three years. Some giants of the cricket world as Damien Martyn Brian Lara Inzamam-ul-Haq, Imran Farhat, Abdul Razzaq, Azhar Mahmood Chris Read, Darren Maddy, Vikram Solanki, Paul Nixon,Chris Harris, Chris Cairns, Hamish Marshall, Nathan Astle,Lance Klusener, Nicky Boje, Dinesh Mongia,Boyd Rankin, Niall O'Brien have joined and strenghthened the status and formidability of the league.
Each team will be coached by an international cricketer and will be consisted of four international, two Indian and eight blooming domestic players.BCCI has been told that it is free to hire from ICL talent pool. The league was materialised in November 2007 with matches in the Twenty20 format.
MICHAEL BEVAN, MOIN KHAN, INZAMAMULHAQ, DARRYL CULLINAN, CRAIG, MADAN LAL MARVAN ATTAPATTU, SANDIP PATIL, BRIAN LARA, BALWINDER SANDHU, CHRIS CAINS are a few names which have been assigned the duties of captaincy and coaching of the different teams.
BOARD OF ICL
An expert panel have been appointed as the board of ICL. The members include Kapil dev Tony Greig Dean Jones and Kiran More. A lucrative package has been announced for them. An OMBUDSMAN has also been appointed to look into the grievences of the players.
A Bone Of Contention
The ICL has become a bone of contention between the players and their respective boards. PCB has banned the players who joined the ICL, in the same way the different cricketing countries have different opinions about the ICL.
OPINION OF BCCI
The BCCI had not recognised ICL as a cricket league.On the other hand it had made pungent remarks on its creation and joining of it by the former cricketers.Kapil Dev has been fired from his NCA post. Subhash Chandra the owner and the maker of the ICL had vowed that the ICL will go ahead inspite of all the oddities. Moreover the ICC has also disbanned the ICL unless BCCI recognizes it.
ICL filed a petition against BCCI in the Delhi High Courtand the Delhi High Court ruled in favor of ICL. Various government bodies have suppotred and boosted the league too. Many Indian states and their CM,s are also in favour of the ICL.
CONCLUSION
Future OF THE ICL
ICL announces its expansion with a fifty over tournament in February 2008, and the the ICL Indian Championship with eight teams in September and October 2008. Would the ICL would die like many other other private cricket leagues is a big question. Would it last for few years like the league of Kerry Packer of Australia or other such leagues or it would it be a forerunner for the other cricketing countries as a success story.
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