Well, this may not exactly be a part of the game, but from the viewers’ experience point of view, there cannot be any other method to describe this, but ‘it sucked’.
In sports broadcasting, there have been ads and then, there have been ads. But if ever there was a category of awards for the ‘Most Innovative Money-Spinning Techniques using Advertisements’, it needs to go to the IPL. And now. Not too many can come close.
First it was the DLF Maximums, that were bellowed out with an alarming alacrity by every commentator; almost like the commentators’ pay-scale was directly proportional to the number of sixes that were hit during their stint. Of course, there were a few like Danny Morrison who probably earned some bonus brownies by innovating further – ‘that’s a DLFaaa’!
Then came the strategy time-outs. Time Out, Money In; TOMI, as I call them. It necessitated a Sachin Tendulkar to get the rule modified to bearable levels.
This time around, I, for one, have been wondering about Shane Warne. For, there is no doubt in my mind that Warne would have had enough time to think through their strategies, and will have more than his share of a trick or two up his sleeves for the tournament, something that not too many fans or opponents alike, would have thought of.
What I did not expect was for the IPL to out-smart us all with a couple of new ones; Karbonn Mobile catch, and the Baap of them all, an advertisement on the giant screen in the stadiums shown live to the TV audiences in the middle of an over. So, it is like the third ball of the over. The batsman pats it back to the bowler, and boom; the giant screen explodes with the ad. The usually boisterous commentators are given a 10-second break from their non-stop verbose, and we, are left stunned by the manner in which we have been out-thought again.
Give it to them I tell you; bow your heads down to them. Now!
The question that I now ask is; can it get ‘better’? How else can the moolah be raked in during the game?
1.Distributing branded jerseys to the audiences and making it mandatory for them to wear them or not allow them inside the ground. Pan the camera on different sections of the crowd betweens balls and laugh your way to the bank. (with a note behind the ticket: Patrons who remove our t-shirts will be expelled from the ground and criminal charges could be laid against them)
2.Just like Lalit Modi declares the tournament open, Rudi Koertzen has become synonymous with declaring open the first game. Get him and his breed to open every over with a sponsor’s name; ‘Right arm over the wicket, brought to you by Britannia, ting ting tingding!’. Into the mikes of course.
3.Any ideas?
by Suneer Chowdhary
(The writer is a cricket rambler and can be contacted at suneerchowdhary@gmail.com. He will continue doing so for us whenever he gets that 25th hour of the day.)
Related posts:
- Preview and Live Streaming of IPL2010 match Kolkata Knight Riders v Deccan Chargers at Kolkata Kolkata Knight Riders will take on the Deccan Chargers in...
- Preview and Live Streaming of Deccan Chargers v Kolkata Knight Riders The Indian Premier League begins from the 12th of March...
- Kolkata Knight Riders beat Bangalore, win second successive game Kolkata’s giant-killing streak and Shah rukh Khan’s more than giant...
- Preview and Live Streaming of IPL2010 match Kings XI Punjab v Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens, Kolkata A win here, a loss there and the entire points...
- Gilchrist wins toss and Deccan fields: Opening Ceremony of IPL 2010 ends at Dr. DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai 8.00 pm IST Toss-time. Adam Gilchrist, Sourav Ganguly and that...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
