The most explosive season of the IPL is currently underway in 2024. Indians have been divided on the basis of their favorite franchises, beginning their rivalries. The teams are surely maintaining the heat, but the fandoms are equally enthusiastic for their respective teams. While nearing the halfway point of the season, Tata IPL 2024 has already proven to be the most explosive of them all. However, the factors contributing to this hard-hitting success of the IPL are unhealthy for the sport of cricket.
Royal Challenges Bangalore‘s long-held record of 11 years with a 263 high score was brought down this season. Sunrisers Hyderabad achieved the feat twice this season, scoring a record-breaking total of 277 and even 287. SRH achieved both of those massive scores while batting first, putting the opposition under pressure already. However, that was achievable on the flat pitches of M. Chinnaswamy Stadium against the Mumbai Indians and Uppal Stadium against RCB itself.
Considering the quick rise in runs due to Travis Head and Heinrich Klaasen’s bombastic knocks, the audience feels the intensity of experiencing an explosive match. But that’s not how a cricket match should be and rather, it should require the demanding efforts of entire team. The flat pitches favor batsman, easily disallow the ball to have any kind of spin and are of little to no help for bowlers. It supports the predictable bounce on a track with no grass, roughness, or cracks.
Such games with tremendous hard hitting and 250+ scores in T20 disallow the ability to check anyone’s reliability. These situations are analogous to a test match being played on a rank-turner pitch where spinners dominate the game. Every batsman will lack the challenge and benefit from the friendly pitch, while disallowing the chance to judge any player on this basis. This is somehow affecting the psychology of new-age players who aim at boundaries and forget the technical part of the game.
Keeping in mind the hard-hitting nature of T20 and especially in IPL, these pitches are made to score! But a fair cricket game should never be biased and have a pitch equally favorable to both the batsman and the bowler. BCCI should keep track of such pitches and keep up the spirit of IPL by regulating their making. This not only makes the ‘gentleman’s game’ more challenging but also beautiful for us to enjoy.
