Deccan (Re) Chargers ?

When the ‘battery-low’ sign pops up on your monitor, it means it’s time for a recharge, unless you want to have an abrupt interruption in your all important work. Likewise, the Deccan chargers and the BCCI have apparently noticed the warning signs popping up on the ‘liability ‘screen and decided that it was time to recharge the DC team which seems to have carried their on-field ‘roller-coaster’ performance on to their off-field financial performance as well. The team which has gone a ‘full circle’ from being highly rated initially and ending up last in the table, to being called under-dogs and winning the tournament in 2009, is now gearing up to face a similar situation off-field as well. The proud owners are now at sea, waiting to be saved from drowning in financial debt. Yes, you heard it right. The Hyderabadi IPL franchise is up for sale and the BCCI is in a hurry to proceed with the sale in order to keep this franchise alive for the 2013 IPL season, which, otherwise, is expected to burn a Rs.100 cr hole in the pockets of the enterprising Indian cricket board.

Seldom does the normal cricket fan realise the enormity of the responsibility and financial burden that rests on the owners’ shoulders in owning an IPL franchise. The glamorous side of the IPL has always shown us the happy and enthusiastic faces of the team owners cheering their teams from their respective ‘Dug-outs’. The presence of bollywood beauties and other celebrities gives even more reason for the common man to perceive that the owners of the teams are nothing short of celebrities themselves and are having the time of their lives, mingling with the ‘heavy-weights’ of the entertainment industry and the super- elite. It’s a fantasy world, a manufactured dream, one that comes true sometimes and on some occasions turns into a nightmare for the unlucky few.

It’s only when the ugly side of being the owners of a loss-enduring franchise surfaces, that one realises IPL is not always a “They lived happily ever after” fairy-tale. However, when it comes to the BCCI, nothing seems to shake them up. They seem to be immune to complicated situations and somehow, time and again, have wriggled out of tricky situations by doing a ‘Houdini act’. Just put them in a spot and the old-war horses in the BCCI administration get their act together, do a lot of brain storming and lo, the cheer-girls appear from nowhere and another season starts rolling!

The depth of the ‘Deccan- crisis’ is not very clear to the outsider. All that he, as a cricket fan, looks forward to is an exciting new-season of the IPL, so that he can get away from all the worldly routines and immerse himself in this show of ‘instant-kicks’. All he does is probably save up some money for the ticket or buy a new television/TV connection that promises to record all the matches, in case he misses any. It is for us to wait and see if the BCCI can re-work its magic and keep the show going. As for the Chargers, they did have their time under the sun, but probably with the sun going down on the franchise, it’s time to re-charge.