Attrition Hits IPL - Cricket Blog

by Siddharth Raman

Lalit Modi’s statement that the IPL is recession proof may definitely be difficult to debate but he certainly will accept the fact that it is not attrition proof.

Ricky Ponting’s decision regarding not to take part in this year’s edition of the IPL could very well be influenced by Steve Waugh’s admonition of him after Ponting was rested for the first two ODI’s against New Zealand. Waugh called it outright hypocrisy if you are rested for matches where you represent your country but are available for your franchise in the Indian Premier League. This sentiment was echoed by many former Australian cricketers – Allan Border and Mark Waugh to name a few. They are of the opinion that the IPL takes its toll on the players mentally more than physically. The logic is simple - if your mind is fresh then the body follows suite. However six weeks of nonstop travelling, high pressure games, page three parties and promotional events is bound to take its toll on the (mentally) strongest of players. Ponting’s decision was in sharp contrast to Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s decision to skip the Sri Lanka test series following the IPL citing fatigue as the reason. But the connecting thread between both these decisions was the fact that the International schedule for most of the test nations is packed thanks to the ICC’s future tours programme and the IPL just adds to that. Instead of rejuvenating themselves and relaxing during the two or three week break that players get they find themselves at four different airports and hotels in the span of seven days and living out of a suitcase.

Ponting’s team mates Michael Clarke and Mitchell Johnson opted out of the auction process itself. Now why would somebody want to give up the chance to earn close to a million dollars for playing T20 cricket in India for five weeks of the year? Clarke and Johnson are the (as of now) small group of cricketers who know how much the human body can endure and prefer to extend their longevity in International cricket rather than get swayed away by earning the proverbial ‘quick buck’. Moreover their decision might also be influenced by what happened to Mathew Hayden – following last year’s IPL his Achilles heel played up again and he had to leave the West Indies tour abruptly. And the response by the Australian media was anything but kind. They immediately blamed it on the IPL and there was an element of truth to that. The fact that Michael Clarke is recovering from a thumb and back injury and Johnson is now shouldering the burden of the Australian pace bowling attack has also definitely contributed to their decision. Apart from these players Shaun Pollock has also decided not to feature in this year’s IPL. The Mumbai Indian’s most economical bowler will definitely be missed.

The other misfortune for this year’s IPL is the absence of all Pakistani players in the league. The team to be hit worst by this is the Kolkata Knight Riders – Salman Butt , Mohammad Hafeez, Umar Gul – an opening batsmen, a T20 bowling specialist and a useful all rounder respectively – they will be difficult to replace. The Knight Riders had planned to put Shoaib Akhtar up for sale before this decision was announced so that does not affect them much. The Rajasthan Royals will be without the services of the winner of the inaugural edition’s purple cap – Sohail Tanvir and also a handy wicketkeeper batsman in the form of Kamran Akmal. Shaun Tait could be touted as Tanvir’s replacement but one wonders if the injury prone bowler would be available for all matches. The Delhi Daredevils batting line-up will have a huge void to fill with Shoaib Malik too not being available for the series. Mohammad Asif has a lot more to worry about than just the ban on Pakistani cricketers for this season. The Bangalore Royal Challengers too will be without Misbah ul Haq, the role of a finisher in a T20 game is very difficult to emulate and it will be interesting to see how the team which managed to win only three of their fourteen games in last year’s edition cope with the loss of Misbah this time around.

There is also the case of players being unavailable due to injury. Graeme Smith’s tennis elbow will be put to test in the gruelling home series against Australia. Andrew Flintoff’s hip injury is a major cause of concern for the Chennai Super Kings. The King’s XI Punjab team will not have Brett Lee opening their bowling for at least the initial part of the league courtesy an ankle injury. The Indian team will be back after a packed fifty day schedule in New Zealand and it would be hard to imagine that no player returns without a niggle at least. All this may sound very pessimistic but it cannot be denied that it is realistic.

The IPL has been a huge hit and will continue to draw crowds to the stadium but the absence of many international players this time around and also a growing breed of cricketers who put their country before the league will be a cause of concern for future seasons as well. For the latter – the BCCI and IPL need to sit and work out a solution that satiates the appetite of a cricket lover for T20 action and also does not reduce the shelf life of International cricketers.

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