World T20 and IPL: Worthy entertainment or overdose?

There is an old saying, 'Medicine is good, but too much medicine can be bad.'

When the format of Twenty20 was introduced into the world of cricket, it seemed to be a saviour for the game. Suddenly the crowd that had shown a lack of interest in the gentleman's game seemed to be flocking back to the stadiums. What started as a simple venture to attract the masses transformed into a bigger entity. The inaugural edition of the ICC World Twenty20 Championship was held in South Africa in 2007 which India won with a five-run victory over Pakistan in the final. The success of the World T20 gave birth to a concept by the BCCI known as the Indian Premier League. The idea was to get all the international stars on one platform and the first edition was held in 2008 with Rajasthan Royals taking home the title.

However, while the T20 form of cricket is entertaining, questions have been raised on it's ability to truly determine the skills of a cricketer. Purists have argued that this version of the game has tarnished the sanctity of Tests. The issue cropping up is whether there is an overdose of T20 cricket, whether there is too much T20 cricket being played in a short a span of time. There is no better example that comes to mind than the current window between the ICC World Twenty20 and the Indian Premier League.

The World T20 ended on April 6 with Sri Lanka winning their maiden title, while the IPL commences from April 16. Having two major T20 tournaments over a period of two-and-half months clearly puts into perspective two ways of looking at the situation. Firstly, it is worth the time and money to see these 20-over games which are a huge source of entertainment and secondly, it is simply an overdose of T20 cricket. (Also read: Top five controversies ahead of IPL 7)

Opinions will be divided on this issue and to take an unbiased call would be too much to hope for. What can be analysed nonetheless, is the effect this will have on the viewers and the players themselves.

Regardless of the intent and nature of the tournaments, a one-dimensional form of the game can seem to be a drag to both players and viewers. Having said that, the T20 format was designed to withstand the effects of boredom and one-dimensionality. What this situation does for the players is that they may risk getting sucked into the slam-bang mode of T20, and will need to time to revert their gameplay in time for Tests and ODIs. While they are professionals, they are only human at the end of the day. As far as the viewers are concerned, IPL has often attracted huge crowds irrespective of when and where it is played.

It is indeed tough to determine if too much of T20s is an overdose. The world as we know it is not black and white, there are shades of grey. Cricket is no exception and certainly not this form of the game. The ICC World Twenty20 and the Indian Premier League are products of the same format and attracts similar crowds. In that sense, IPL can be seen as an extension of the World Twenty20 as the former simply picks up from where the latter leaves to continue the cycle. So in retrospect, one can say that the combination of the World T20 and IPL could be an overdose, but one worth every penny.