Franchises not fussed about moving homes

First they had to play in the UAE, and now four IPL franchises have been forced to play home matches outside their base as the tournament enters its business leg. Lack of home support, failure to capitalise on home-ground conditions, and trying to appease and pacify sponsors are some of the issues Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals have faced this season because of the IPL schedule clashing with India's federal elections.

On Friday, the Super Kings were forced to shift two of their league matches from Chennai to Ranchi, while the Royals had to settle for Ahmedabad as their home for four matches due to the inability of the Rajasthan Cricket Association to acquire requisite state government clearances.

The Punjab police could not provide security due to elections in Mohali, Kings XI's home venue, forcing them to pick the eastern city of Cuttack to play two matches. The Knight Riders were scheduled to play four matches at Eden Gardens, but due to security issues their home match against Mumbai Indians has also been shifted to Cuttack.

How much does the displacement affect the franchise? According to KKR chief executive Venky Mysore, the impact is not significant.

"Cuttack will be a new experience because within India we are playing away from home," Mysore told ESPNcricinfo. "From a cricketing perspective you always want to play in Kolkata because you know the conditions better, you know what to expect and you have picked the team for that. There is a challenge in terms of not playing at your home ground from the fan support and conditions standpoint. Needless to say, you want to play at home from the cricketing point of view but there is nothing we could do about it due to the security issue."

Knight Riders will be playing two matches in three days in Cuttack, against Kings XI on Sunday and against Mumbai on May 14. Cuttack is also Kings XI's home ground, but Mysore said he was banking on the Bengali-speaking locals to support Knight Riders.

The biggest disadvantage for Knight Riders in Cuttack would be on the money front because of lower ticket revenue - Eden Gardens is virtually double the capacity of the Barabati Stadium.

"In terms of costs it should not make a huge difference," Mysore said. "But the sheer size of Eden makes even a sellout in Cuttack shrink the ticket revenues by almost 50%."

Mohit Burman, one of the co-owners of Kings XI, said that franchises were now used to playing away from home since they had already done so in 2009, when the tournament was moved to South Africa,

"Initially the displacement from a home venue is a little discomforting for anyone as one has a sense of belonging and more importantly, familiarity of working with the local people in a certain area one has been operating in," Burman said. "Having said that, this is not the first time that the IPL venue has been changed - it was organised in South Africa in the second season and this year we have three venues - UAE, Cuttack and Mohali. One gets used to it."

Franchise owners have also had to accept that federal elections every five years is likely to lead to a repeat of such scenarios. "We are left with no choice. It is not that it was out love and affection we were going to one place or another," the marketing head at one of the franchises said.

Burman added that despite being a little sceptical earlier about having Cuttack as the second home, he was now entirely happy.

"We felt at home at a new venue and it was easy to adapt to the new environment," Burman said. "Also, the people from Cuttack have been great supporters of the team. The enthusiasm that they have towards the sport is almost contagious."

Burman agreed with Mysore's opinion about cultivating a new audience, but the marketing head pointed out the disadvantage of the franchise's distinct and loyal fan base being hurt where they were not getting enough matches.

Despite being table toppers this season, Kings XI have not yet played in Mohali, starving local fans of the action. "It depends on how you see the larger picture," Burman said. "A change in venue also enables the team to reach out to the much larger audience and connect with its fans across the globe. They also get an opportunity to see their favourite team in action live at a stadium."

What about the sponsors? According to the marketing head, the sponsor would have planned activation around his local city. Just having the logos on the team shirts is not what the sponsor is satisfied with, as he would need players to be present at local events where he could promote his brand. Places like Ranchi and Cuttack, the marketing head said, were cities where the fans could turn out in huge numbers at the ground, but the sponsor was keener on player involvement in his franchise's original home base.

Mysore said that since Knight Riders had many pan-Indian sponsors, they were at an advantage. "Fortunately we are not restricted to regional brands so to that extent I do not think the displacement has had a huge impact," Mysore said, though he pointed out that the first phase of the tournament being played in UAE did pinch the franchise. "It had some impact because if it were to happen in India, the sponsor activation could have become easier."

Mysore said the challenge of taking the tournament to a foreign market could be much higher than playing in Cuttack.

"The opportunity to take part of the tournament to a different market with a strong following for cricket was a nice little positive challenge. Some of the brands also got to see what it might mean to activate in UAE."