Cover StorySports

IPL: Hitting New Heights

Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Rachin Ravindra and Harshal Patel

The year 2008 brought about a big change in my life when I moved from the Indian Air Force to the corporate world. It was a planned move in my career, but something else happened to my lifestyle which I had never planned or anticipated. I had always been notorious for being an early-to-bed person and 10 p.m. had always been the latest cut-off time for my studies even during the most crucial examination times.

The only exception was the period of study at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, where the curriculum and mode of imparting knowledge have to be experienced to be believed; it just does not permit any physical or mental laxity, laziness or luxury. Needless to add, the professors are exceptional as are the case studies that one has to prepare by burning the midnight oil.

Out from the clutches of IIMA, as the General Manager of Forbes & Company Limited, I had every opportunity to revert to my old habits, which they say die hard, but one thing ensured that it was not to be: the start of the Indian Premier League. With the exception of a few matches, almost all matches continued to be decided in the last two overs of the match and starting at 8 p.m. it was not unusual for most of the matches going beyond 11.15 p.m.

Thanks to the organising skill of Lalit Modi, the IPL not only impacted my personal lifestyle but converted not only cricket but the whole sports world into a huge commercial venture which before 2008 was unforeseeable by any stretch of the imagination. Undoubtedly, Indian cricket and Indian cricketers have been the biggest gainers and the gain has not been limited to just commercial gains.

Foreign players and Boards that at one time did not refrain from misbehaving with their Indian counterparts are now judicious enough not to annoy their adversaries lest they are boycotted from participating in cricket’s most lucrative competition. At the same time, the Board of Control for Cricket in India now has a big reservoir to exhume cricketing talent in this country.

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Gp Capt Achchyut Kumar has been associated with The Teenager Today for more than 50 years as a reader and contributor on varied topics. Having worked in the Indian Air Force and with Forbes & Company Limited, he is now a lawyer in Nainital High Court.

Gp. Capt. Achchyut Kumar

Gp Capt Achchyut Kumar has been associated with The Teenager Today for more than 50 years as a reader and contributor on varied topics. Having worked in the Indian Air Force and with Forbes & Company Limited, he is now a lawyer in Nainital High Court.