When all is done and dusted OR Musings on IPL and Cricket

And so it has ended - this Lent-long vigil of mostly underwhelming and mediocre cricket. At the denouement there were so many distractions that the actual play appeared incidental. Perhaps fittingly the final - and this is from those who watched it and not from a prejudiced twerp like me - turned out to be mild; soporific, even.

Let's return to the original premise - that 2020 is the 'new' face of cricket, that it is the version  that youngsters and housewives are interested in. I hope not. Whatever little that one saw of IPL, the lasting impression was that a large part of the audience was not really interested in the game of cricket - they were there to be seen in the company of the film stars and other glamorous people; they liked to be part of the glitz and the festivities. One hopes to be proven wrong - I hope that most people watching IPL were there because of their love for the game. And it is in the hope that cricket shall prevail that I wish to make several random points; and an random points go, these appear here in no particular order:

1. For 2020s and IPL to be taken seriously by all (i.e. the godforsaken lovers of Test Cricket) it is imperative that the dumbing-down is stopped forthwith. (duh!) Well, that means no short boundaries, no cute breaks, no rechristening (pardon me, fair Christian folk!) of Sixes and catches and hits to the box. Let's not dick around with the game. There, I have said it.
2. That Sachin is an all-time-great player, but is not, is not, is not a leader of men in the traditional sense. (remember! I said random points). He is a fine example of arrested boyhood and also of an exemplary cricketing brain. But it does not, does not, does not translate to him being a great captain. And I say this as a devotee who writes to praise him, not bury him that let us not burden him with attributes that he does not have.
3. That in Mahi we have a captain who is grounded, clever, decently skilled, brave and amazingly lucky. It won't surprise anyone if he ends is career with a high win-loss ratio - let me stick this neck out - a ratio above 60%
4. That showing a battery of ill-clad white girls doing hoops is not innovation. In passing, don't know about you, but it struck me to be a deep case of racism to have only white, girls dance. (Hope you noticed the comma, pregnant with meaning between white and girls) 
5. That commentary is an integral part of all sports; more so in cricket - for it is blessed with a vocabulary so rich and eccentric that it is absolutely, insanely criminal to let loose upon the unsuspecting public the likes of Sidhu (it would be ok if he meets with an accident that robs him of his speech. Just saying, mind you, not wishing!), Morrison (drown him, please!), Bedi (Angad, not Ms noodlestrap - and I honestly do not know who is the worse of the two; and that is saying a lot!), et al. To be honest, even a seasoned speaker like Shastri was reduced to being a buffoon and an all-time great cricketer and a sober commentator like Gavaskar was annoying more times than decency warrants.
6. If there is to be innovation then bring it in the game. An example: allow one catching mitt to the fielding team - let the captain decide which fielding position should have it. This will bring a semblance of balance; after all, every rule favours the batting side nowadays. So it will be a treat to see 99 out of the 100 of those impossibly high, curling catches being bagged.
7. Let ricochets off the stumps be declared as dead-ball in 2020. There have been some cricketers who have mooted this idea - and I think it is only fair. If the administrators are reluctant to adopt this universally, let it be made operational in 2020s at least.
8. I'd like to see another change in 2020 - let the bowling team have the right to bring in their brand of balls. As long as it is a standard issue and meets the regulations I don't see why batsmen should have all the advantages of bringing Mongooses and Civets into the game without giving a similar option to the bowlers.
9. Captains finishing their overs slowly, for every 5 minutes delay they should be fined the equivalent of one over worth of runs scored at the highest run-rate that the batting team achieved in its 20 overs. And of course, also the stiff fines. If 2020 is meant to be fast and furious cricket where there is only time to react, then no side should have the advantage of getting free-time to think and ponder and delay
10. If BCCI is the coffer for the game and its shepherd, then let it be a good shepherd! Let it not be a bully that steamrolls cricket into a dish that is neither fish nor fowl. How I wish that BCCI would first fill the calendar of the years to come with test series, then ODI and then 2020 (if it must!). The rock, the pebble and the sand...then the cup of cricket shall not run over with bad tidings; it will sound a sonorous, melodious ring and spread unalloyed joy to all! Amen!