The IPL Season 5 is on. With it comes the hype, hoopla, cricket, entertainment et al. After the stunning opening ceremony at Chennai which showcased more of Bollywood than cricket, the tune of the tournament too sounded different.
We saw the shocking defeat of reigning champion Chennai Super Kings to an equally strong and motivated Mumbai Indians; the loss of Kolkata Knight Riders to a rejuvenated Delhi Daredevils at the packed Eden Gardens and the deserving victories of Pune Warriors India over Mumbai Indians and Rajathan Royals' against Kings XI Punjab.
As the tournament progresses more shockers are in store.
A gathering of 55,000 spectators at the Eden Gardens braving a Nor'wester to watch KKR taking on DD itself was a great advertisement to the shorter version of the game.
“Times have changed,” bemoaned a Cricket Association of Bengal veteran who has been watching cricket at this venue for the past four decades. “Twenty20 is like fast food; it is filling but lacks nutrition. Likewise, most of the T20 shots are spectacular but lack finesse.”
Despite the rain, there were enough sideshows to keep the spectators' interest going. The arrival of Chief Minister, Ms Mamata Banerjee, at the franchise's box along with KKR's co-owner Shah Rukh Khan and the who's who of Tollywood, combined to make a heady cocktail amid gust of wind, thunder and lightning.
The season 5 opener ought to have missed the charming, charismatic figure of Sourav Ganguly, the Prince of Kolkata.
Roped in by KKR as the Icon Player for three years, Ganguly captained the side for two years. . Discarded at the beginning of the fourth year and having nowhere to go as other franchises refused to rope him in, Ganguly was a regular to the Dr. B.C. Roy Club House.
He watched KKR play its home matches, a move that kept him on top of the popularity chart even ahead of Shah Rukh Khan.
“Ganguly is Bengal's pride,” asserted a veteran club official. “Cricket without Ganguly at the Eden Gardens is like lunch without fish for a Bengali.”
Shah Rukh became the Brand Ambassador of Bengal thanks to the benevolence showered on him by Ms Banerjee. Gautam Gambhir led KKR to the fourth place finish; the best ever show by this franchise in IPL.
Still KKR lacked acceptance from a large section of the public.
Ganguly promptly picked up Bengal's pace spearhead, Ashoke Dinda, to play for the Pune side earlier this season. KKR supporters were hoping against hope to see a product of Bengal cricket emerge as the Knight in the shining armour.
Manoj ‘Chota Dada' Tiwary's first ball dismissal, Debabrata Das' terrific six of Morne Morkel before the pathetic run out or even Laxmi Ratan Shukla's cameo that was largely instrumental in KKR reaching a respectable total. Nothing mattered. The humiliating loss by eight wickets to a team that was termed as depleted brought forth more derisive comments!
The icing on the cake was Ganguly captaining Pune Warriors India to an authoritative victory against Mumbai Indians at Mumbai in which Dinda made a solid impact with four for 17.
The battle has just begun. This one promises to be a better one than the traditional rivalry between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan!