Why I Love the IPL

Hype is a wonderful thing. I must admit that I've been swept up in the intoxicating flurry of positive publicity that has preceded the second edition of the IPL. I know, for instance, that some of the players touted as superstars aren't actually as good as all that. I am sure that more than one game will turn out to be a one-sided borefest. I am willing to bet too that by the middle of the second week, I will be tired of watching the cheerleaders, annoyed by the repetitive music and driven to distraction by the relentless advertising (particularly the egregious seven and a half minute ad break after the tenth over).

But there are two elements to sport. The first is the game itself, the nuances, the skills and the players. What we will witness in the IPL is indeed cricket, but a caffeine-fuelled, stripped down version of the game. But the second thing we look for in sport is entertainment. Yes it is true that nothing can compare with the slow build up of tension over a five match Test series. The thrill of the 2005 Ashes will not be surpassed by anything we are likely to see in Twenty20. The problem is that you have to sit through an awful lot of ordinary Test cricket to get to the good bit.

Not so long ago I shared the view of many British sports fans that American sports, with their abhorrence for the draw, their franchise system and their insistence on every season ending in a final were not the real thing. Yes our sports might be dull, yes the Premier League and the County Championship might be decided long before the end, but when they did go to the last week, they had a depth of tension that could not be equalled.

But I don't think like that any more. I don't think sport is a metaphor for life, nor do I think it has any meaning beyond the moment. When I watch a sporting event, I want entertainment, showmanship and a fair chance of a thrilling finish. On average, you are more likely to get that in a Twenty20 game than a Test match.

So come Saturday lunchtime, I will be sitting with my beer, my assortment of snacks, wearing my Ajantha Mendis t-shirt and waving my Chennai Super Kings flag as quite possibly the greatest cricket show on earth gets underway.