Will Srinivasan save Indian cricket?
The richest cricket body in the world can’t stop the declining interest in the sport
Nikita Bastian
25-Feb-2013
The richest cricket body in the world can’t stop the declining interest in the sport. Can BCCI President N Srinivasan revive it, ask Abhishek Raghunath, Udit Misra and Mitu Jayashankar, in Forbes India.
The [2011] IPL was followed by a horror tour of England. Matters got better when India thrashed England on the return leg; but West Indies’ tour of India didn’t get people excited. India’s tour of Australia put [television] viewers off completely and cricket has been on a downward spiral. That is why IPL 5 is so important. The league gets in at least half of BCCI’s revenues. If it doesn’t get ratings to shoot upwards, the BCCI’s two other big properties, the Champions League T20 and international matches played in India will get into a downward spiral as well. The knock-on effect is not felt in the ad rates for the current series but the next one. So, now, advertisers are asking for a minimum guarantee viewership for the next big tournament: IPL.
Nikita Bastian is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo