Team Café
The bad omen started right from the first
day of ‘India ka tyohar’ – a term that literally translates into ‘festival of
India’ used by the broadcasters for the eighth season of Indian Premier League.
Saif, who made his debut as the TV host with IPL 8, fumbled, forgot lines and
failed at contributing something unique to the opening ceremony. Shahid Kapoor
followed, taking to the stage to entertain the viewers who unfortunately ended
up crashing the bike and breaking the stage. The so-called celebration also
brought a disapproving frown from cricket enthusiasts. For optimistic others
who hoped that the remainder of the tournament would be exciting, the
progression until now has not featured anything that qualifies as exceptional.
It appears that the current edition of the Indian Premier League, is perhaps
the dullest season so far, or so it appears to be in Goa.
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Aritra Mukherjee, is a media professional
who shuttles between Goa, Mumbai and Delhi for work. He feels that IPL 8 has
taken off really well in the metros but appears to be relatively dull in Goa.
He says, “I just think that the IPL doesn’t cut ice with Goans. One, because
they are not dedicated cricket followers, and two, because there’s no team
representing them. Also, Goa does not have a huge population from other states
that have IPL representation.”
Conrad Barretto, the admin of the Facebook
page, ‘The Football Dugout’ is also the admin of its cricket counterpart, ‘The
Cricket Dugout’. He has also been one of the people responsible for screening
IPL matches at Acacia Palms in Colva. Conrad says, “I wouldn’t say it has been
a flop season because some of the teams are really looking competitive and
we’ve already seen a few thrillers including a super over. Having said that,
the buzz isn’t as big as it was at some of the places that screened the matches
in Goa last year. Hardly 30-40 people have been showing up at the screenings.
Maybe the knock out stages will draw in more of a crowd.”
