Posted by Over the last year or so, the IPL’s marketing/propaganda has been accepted to such an extent that players and journalists the world over have been lauding it as cricket not just called Twenty20, but from the year 2020 – way ahead of its time.
You can’t help but learn in that kind of environment, everyone says. All the players who play international cricket suddenly seem to get twice as good when they join an IPL side and their team mates get twice as good as a result of the internationals’ presence. Then the internationals learn from their innovative colleagues and before you know it, Don Bradman’s an underachiever and Malcolm Marshall’s a bowling novice.
Which makes it refreshing to hear India coach, Gary Kirsten, say the following:
“IPL is a domestic competition, a club competition in many respects. Whilst you have international players in the team, you’ve got first-class cricketers making up the rest. There was a reasonably big gap between what is happening at IPL and what is happening internationally and that is only natural.”
We like the IPL, but we are massively, hugely against it coming to be considered as more significant than international cricket.
Rob Key was not purchased by an IPL franchise. Is any further proff needed?
yeah, right the Ireland and Netherlands team would whip ALL the IPL teams with their second string, right?
Oh I forgot Scotland and England.
Wake up mate.
Let’s see if England can get past Kolkata Knight riders, first
Raj, England have already taken on board the Cricket Coaching Genius that is KKR’s own John Buchanan.
Having been shown the way by the finest the IPL has to offer (the South Africans), they have since proven that they are willing to learn.
Their progress was demonstrated in their beating of the IPL 3rd XI (aka India).
T20 is not a game of huge skill as pointed out in past posts. Tactics make a huge difference, as Leicestershire winning the cup in 2 of the first 3 years showed. Thus playing more often improves the tactical nous of the players and this was evident at the first WC. There has been enough T20 games to remove this gap.
Dunno about the KKR Raj but we certainly got past India (but no great kudos in that as so did everyone else)
Surely the great domestic acid test will take place 6 July when Middlesex take on the Rajastan Royals at Lord’s.
I’m thinking of putting on my fancy dress and watching from the pavilion. Then, for once, at least one person will join in the Mexican wave from the pav.
This topic has got much too serious IMHO, especially given its circus subject matter.
BTW, could you please supply me with a bacon and egg coloured giant hand for 6 July, KC.
Usual address.
As i have said before Twenty20 is a travesty,bit like a tribute band. Entertaining but nothing like real stuff.
Racist.