A Revolutionary named Lalit Modi
April 18, 2008, is red-letter day for all cricket aficionados. For it was on this day that the first game of the Indian Premier League was played.
Since that day IPL has helped to break boundaries and unite people in their love for the game. After all, where else would one get to see a Kieron Pollard batting with Sachin Tendulkar, or see Dale Steyn and Vinay Kumar share the new ball.
And the credit for this extraordinary revolution in the cricket world goes to one man: Lalit Kumar Mo
a revolutionary named lalit modi
IPL is Mr. Modi’s brainchild. But it was an idea in his mind long before the world had even been introduced to the concept. He first approached the BCCI in 1996 and pitched the concept of a limited-over cricket league – a type of made-for-TV version of the game. A format that allowed cricket to compete against football in terms of duration – a three-hour long game.
But it was only after India won the inaugural T20 World Cup tournament in 2007 that the Mr. Modi was able to get the IP
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L off the ground.
The first edition of IPL was unique in many ways with Mr. Modi introducing NBA-style auctioning of players, encouraging u-19 domestic players, and various other innovative approaches to the game.
The league is based on the same lines as the English Premier League (EPL) in football and the National Basketball League (NBA) in the USA.
Mr. Modi understood the Indian psyche and perfectly married two of the nation’s favorite passions: cricket and Bollywood. It was not a surpr
Category › Cricket
Title › A Revolutionary named Lalit Modi
ise that, according to Television Audience Measurement (TAM), the average Television Rating Points (TRP) of the first 14 matches in season 1 was 4.97.
The Bollywood razzmatazz, cheerleaders and quality cricket ensured a loyal following among the people.
It is this out-of-the-box thinking and drive that has led to the IPL being a runaway success.
In its first year itself, IPL delivered a profit of a thousand crore rupees and financial analysts say IPL’s brand value today stands at Rs 18,000 crore.
During the IPL 2010 closing ceremony, Mr. Modi described it as the Indian People’s League and that what he truly achieved by making cricket enticing and accessible, and hence more lucrative.
In an interview, he outlined his objective in starting IPL. He had said, “It is a very serious attempt to increase the fan base for cricket in India. Furthermore, Indian cricket needed this boost at the domestic level. With IPL, we aim to nurture and build local talent. You will notice the improvement in the quality of cricket being played at the local level soon.”
“I am very optimistic that the DLF Indian Premier League will turn into a global phenomenon, and help take cricket to the next level. I have no doubt in my mind that if we build on this platform over the next few years, we will have a format that could well revolutionize the way cricket is played, watched and followed globally.”
Mr. Modi’s dedication and ability has not gone unnoticed. And in the 2008 August issue of the leading sports magazine Sports Pro, he is ranked number 17 in the Power List of global figures connected with sports.
Time magazine recognized his organizational abilities by ranking him at no. 16 in their list of Best Sports Executives in the World for 2008 in its July 2008 issue.
And he has been true to his vision and made IPL a grand success.