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"Not funny how we're being fed lies that the players' skills have improved due to T20s" : B.S. Bedi

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"Not funny how we're being fed lies that the players' skills have improved due to T20s" : B.S. Bedi

By BISHAN SINGH BEDI

The numbers are mind-blowing – Rs16,347 crore for Indian Premier League media rights – but I have not been surprised by the humongous money committed to the BCCI in the course of this year, thanks to the transparent tendering process.

The BCCI has sold products close to Rs18,000 crore – Rs 16,347.50 crore from IPL media rights and Rs 1,079 crore from Oppo as team sponsor – besides the Rs 2,597 crore promised by the International Cricket Council.

And, that number can quell a lot of arguments, or so the mandarins would think. Unless they address some key issues, the problems in Indian cricket will not go away with the appearance of such large amounts of money. On the contrary, the infusion of so much money can bring along more problems, I reckon.

Let me share one of my biggest concerns first. If you have been watching Test cricket around the world for some years now, you will agree that the overall standards of cricket have declined quite significantly. The reason is not far to seek – Twenty20 cricket. It is not funny how we are being fed lies that the players' skills have improved and led to rising standards.

We cannot blame IPL alone for that. The Big Bash League in Australia, the Caribbean Premier League in the West Indies, the Ram Slam T20 Challenge in South Africa where the new T20 Global League is shaping up, Pakistan Super League, the Bangladesh Premier League etc., have all played no mean role in T20 steadily gnawing away at the roots of traditional cricket.

Test cricket has been put on a slow-poison diet that teams like Australia, the Windies and Sri Lanka are unable to contain the slide over the last two years. All teams, including India, who have enjoyed a fine run in the past years, are happy to win in their own backyards, in a controlled environment. Yes, T20 cricket will upstage Test cricket sooner than imagined.

This answers a question and raises another. First, it explains why many office-bearers of BCCI and its state units do not want to leave their positions even after a Supreme Court order has mandated it to make some basic constitution amendments that will rule them out. Second, it makes us wonder why such a transparent process had not been put in place 10 years ago.

Had it not been for the Justice Lodha Committee and the SC, much of this would have been splurged on non-essential items.


Where will the money go?

Cricketers who are a part of the IPL extravaganza will go laughing to their banks but what happens to the kids at the tail-end of the queue?

It matters little to a kid, dreaming of playing for India, that the IPL media rights deal is worth Rs 3,270 crore each year. It will mean a lot to them if state associations curb the mushroom growth of private academies by setting up official academies and indoor facilities across their respective states so that talent can be groomed right and without the cricketers paying through their noses.

Instead of focusing on enhancing grass-root facilities, state associations will want to build new stadia. And, we just have to glance at the recent past to find echoes of rampant corruption in most places where new stadia have cropped up or are being built.

Earning such a large amount is one thing but to use it wisely and properly, is quite another. Except for a handful of state associations, most have not been able to even account for the money that has been doled by BCCI. New stadiums have sprouted everywhere, thanks to the subsidy BCCI offers towards construction of stadia.

A second stadium is being sought in Mohali, Punjab. Delhi is home to a horrendous stadium has been built on government land without a proper lease. In Haryana, a stadium has been constructed in a village without any residential facilities in the vicinity.

There are allegations of hundreds of crores of rupees being misappropriated. The basic activity of promoting cricket seems unattractive and mundane to the mandarins of the state associations – and the Board doesn't even ask them questions.

There is no doubt that fans will soon start paying more for sport on the DTH or cable TV services and for products and services that are seeking to ride the IPL dragon. In raising the bar so high by fuelling consumer preferences for entertainment in the shortest format of the game, BCCI is testing the audience interest, patience and its paying capacity.

http://www.dnaindia.com/sports/colu...mpensate-for-declining-players-skills-2543530
 
it is hilarious how bitter oldies like holding and bedi are not able to digest the fact that t20 cricket is the future of this game and not the outdated format thats test cricket :))
 
Why is this guy ALWAYS so bitter and angry?

He's got multiple chips on each shoulder!
 
why do media even gives him coverage?
He is always bitter and always complaining about how things are worse. During his play days Indian team were certified minnows. He should just shutup and let young team focus. Bedi, Holding, and Ranatunga are seriously 3 cry babies of cricket. Always have problem with newer generations.
 
Why is this guy ALWAYS so bitter and angry?

He's got multiple chips on each shoulder!

I dont see anything wrong in his statements. He isn't against T20 per se in this article..but surely it is a concern as to whether this huge stash of money coming in is utilised properly..
 
I dont see anything wrong in his statements. He isn't against T20 per se in this article..but surely it is a concern as to whether this huge stash of money coming in is utilised properly..

it does come across as bitter

and i wasnt just referring to this particular statement.

over the years i must have heard dozens of statements from him and he is always whining and complaining
 
He's right. What's the point of India hosting a tournament with 16000 crore media fees when it hasn't won a single T20 world cup since IPL started? It's just a money spinner for the BCCI., nothing else.
 
Bedi is the greatest left arm spinner in the history of cricket and one of the greatest spinner of all time. He has earned the right to say whatever he wants
 
Well it certainly hasn't improved their Test level skills away from home, bedi has a point:shh :jimmy
 
He's right. What's the point of India hosting a tournament with 16000 crore media fees when it hasn't won a single T20 world cup since IPL started? It's just a money spinner for the BCCI., nothing else.

England hasn't won a fifa wc since 1966 so EPL should also be scrapped right? EPL was formed in 1992.
 
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England hasn't won a fifa wc since 1966 so EPL should also be scrapped right? EPL was formed in 1992.

Football is a league sport. It is marketed that way. The day the cricketing calendar consists of leagues all round the year with a few friendlies thrown in between would be the day we can compare both and have a discussion.
 
Bedi is the greatest left arm spinner in the history of cricket and one of the greatest spinner of all time. He has earned the right to say whatever he wants
Exactly.

And he's totally correct.
 
Football is a league sport. It is marketed that way. The day the cricketing calendar consists of leagues all round the year with a few friendlies thrown in between would be the day we can compare both and have a discussion.
Domestic T20 games already outnumber intl matches, it;s only a matter of time before cricket goes the way of football & T20 becomes the staple diet, BBL & Eng local T20 will sound the death knell for many of these meaningless intl fixtures!
 
Football is a league sport. It is marketed that way. The day the cricketing calendar consists of leagues all round the year with a few friendlies thrown in between would be the day we can compare both and have a discussion.

So?? In that case it is even more ridiculous that England hasn't won a WC even after having a league which runs months long and much more professional compared to IPL which is just 2 months long. So how come IPL is useless and EPL not?
 
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By BISHAN SINGH BEDI

The numbers are mind-blowing – Rs16,347 crore for Indian Premier League media rights – but I have not been surprised by the humongous money committed to the BCCI in the course of this year, thanks to the transparent tendering process.

The BCCI has sold products close to Rs18,000 crore – Rs 16,347.50 crore from IPL media rights and Rs 1,079 crore from Oppo as team sponsor – besides the Rs 2,597 crore promised by the International Cricket Council.

And, that number can quell a lot of arguments, or so the mandarins would think. Unless they address some key issues, the problems in Indian cricket will not go away with the appearance of such large amounts of money. On the contrary, the infusion of so much money can bring along more problems, I reckon.

Let me share one of my biggest concerns first. If you have been watching Test cricket around the world for some years now, you will agree that the overall standards of cricket have declined quite significantly. The reason is not far to seek – Twenty20 cricket. It is not funny how we are being fed lies that the players' skills have improved and led to rising standards.

We cannot blame IPL alone for that. The Big Bash League in Australia, the Caribbean Premier League in the West Indies, the Ram Slam T20 Challenge in South Africa where the new T20 Global League is shaping up, Pakistan Super League, the Bangladesh Premier League etc., have all played no mean role in T20 steadily gnawing away at the roots of traditional cricket.

Test cricket has been put on a slow-poison diet that teams like Australia, the Windies and Sri Lanka are unable to contain the slide over the last two years. All teams, including India, who have enjoyed a fine run in the past years, are happy to win in their own backyards, in a controlled environment. Yes, T20 cricket will upstage Test cricket sooner than imagined.

This answers a question and raises another. First, it explains why many office-bearers of BCCI and its state units do not want to leave their positions even after a Supreme Court order has mandated it to make some basic constitution amendments that will rule them out. Second, it makes us wonder why such a transparent process had not been put in place 10 years ago.

Had it not been for the Justice Lodha Committee and the SC, much of this would have been splurged on non-essential items.


Where will the money go?

Cricketers who are a part of the IPL extravaganza will go laughing to their banks but what happens to the kids at the tail-end of the queue?

It matters little to a kid, dreaming of playing for India, that the IPL media rights deal is worth Rs 3,270 crore each year. It will mean a lot to them if state associations curb the mushroom growth of private academies by setting up official academies and indoor facilities across their respective states so that talent can be groomed right and without the cricketers paying through their noses.

Instead of focusing on enhancing grass-root facilities, state associations will want to build new stadia. And, we just have to glance at the recent past to find echoes of rampant corruption in most places where new stadia have cropped up or are being built.

Earning such a large amount is one thing but to use it wisely and properly, is quite another. Except for a handful of state associations, most have not been able to even account for the money that has been doled by BCCI. New stadiums have sprouted everywhere, thanks to the subsidy BCCI offers towards construction of stadia.

A second stadium is being sought in Mohali, Punjab. Delhi is home to a horrendous stadium has been built on government land without a proper lease. In Haryana, a stadium has been constructed in a village without any residential facilities in the vicinity.

There are allegations of hundreds of crores of rupees being misappropriated. The basic activity of promoting cricket seems unattractive and mundane to the mandarins of the state associations – and the Board doesn't even ask them questions.

There is no doubt that fans will soon start paying more for sport on the DTH or cable TV services and for products and services that are seeking to ride the IPL dragon. In raising the bar so high by fuelling consumer preferences for entertainment in the shortest format of the game, BCCI is testing the audience interest, patience and its paying capacity.

http://www.dnaindia.com/sports/colu...mpensate-for-declining-players-skills-2543530

T20 cricket is in demand because it provide viewers a complete package of entertainment. You get to see wickets falling on regular basis, you see great athletes showing their athleticism and you can see huge sixes being hit through innovation. Test cricket can't afford any of such high risk shenanigans. This is the only reason why test cricket will die in few decades in most of the test playing nations barring Australia or England. The test cricket in Australia and England will most probably survive because of the fact that both these countries are involved in an iconic Ashes series.
 
I dont see anything wrong in his statements. He isn't against T20 per se in this article..but surely it is a concern as to whether this huge stash of money coming in is utilised properly..


Me neither, he made some really valid points and did sound bitter at all
 
Another thread to separate the cricket fans worthy of commenting on test cricket and the babies who find the format boring and should never again be taken seriously when they claim that Virat Kohli is a better test batsman than Joe Root and Kane Williamson.
 
Another thread to separate the cricket fans worthy of commenting on test cricket and the babies who find the format boring and should never again be taken seriously when they claim that Virat Kohli is a better test batsman than Joe Root and Kane Williamson.

Please add in the list people who consider Younis Khan an ATG and Amla better than Kohli in limited overs cricket.
 
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Please add in the list people who consider younis khan an atg and amla better than kohli in limited overs cricket.

The Topic. Stick to it. Younis Khan and Hashim Amla have nothing to do with this thread.
 
The Topic. Stick to it. Younis Khan and Hashim Amla have nothing to do with this thread.

Amla maybe has nothig to do with it but Younis Khan surely has. When you can call people claiming Kohli to be better than Root and Williamson in tests cry babies surely I can do the same for those who think that Younis is an atg
 
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He's right. What's the point of India hosting a tournament with 16000 crore media fees when it hasn't won a single T20 world cup since IPL started? It's just a money spinner for the BCCI., nothing else.

We were in the finals of 2014 and would have won it if not for the tuk-tuk of Yuvi. Did pretty well in 2016 too but ran into a rampaging Windies team on a patta wicket in the semis.However, where IPL really helped us is in fielding, overall fitness and pace bowling. Bumrah was not even in the Mumbai team and if not for his performances in IPL, he wouldn't have even got an entry into Indian team.Also the opportunity to bowl against best batsemn in the world along with folks like Malinga had fast tracked his career.And world-class fitness trainers,TV coverage, improved stadia and TV coverage pushed our youngsters to raise their fielding and overall fitness.
 
We were in the finals of 2014 and would have won it if not for the tuk-tuk of Yuvi. Did pretty well in 2016 too but ran into a rampaging Windies team on a patta wicket in the semis.However, where IPL really helped us is in fielding, overall fitness and pace bowling. Bumrah was not even in the Mumbai team and if not for his performances in IPL, he wouldn't have even got an entry into Indian team.Also the opportunity to bowl against best batsemn in the world along with folks like Malinga had fast tracked his career.And world-class fitness trainers,TV coverage, improved stadia and TV coverage pushed our youngsters to raise their fielding and overall fitness.

His Hypocrisy is mind blowing. His arguments r absurd. In one post he says world cup matches r the most important parameter and when someone rebuts his theory he says triangular series are more important. If someone even rebuts that he says every pak india match including kitply, singer cups are as important as world cups
 
IPL master race going Ad hominem in here:

Ad hominem (Latin for "to the man" or "to the person"), short for argumentum ad hominem, is where an argument is rebutted by attacking the character, motive, or other attribute of the person making the argument, or persons associated with the argument, rather than attacking the substance of the argument itself.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem

Bedi has a point. T20 cricket ain't the real cricket. Test cricket is the true cricket. IPLers need to chill and stop attacking one of the best SLA ever.
 
IPL master race going Ad hominem in here:



Bedi has a point. T20 cricket ain't the real cricket. Test cricket is the true cricket. IPLers need to chill and stop attacking one of the best SLA ever.

I'm no fan of the IPL but Test cricket is on life support.

Look at the people who showed up for a Test match.

Packed stands. :yk

p18-151021-312.jpg
 
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We were in the finals of 2014 and would have won it if not for the tuk-tuk of Yuvi. Did pretty well in 2016 too but ran into a rampaging Windies team on a patta wicket in the semis.However, where IPL really helped us is in fielding, overall fitness and pace bowling. Bumrah was not even in the Mumbai team and if not for his performances in IPL, he wouldn't have even got an entry into Indian team.Also the opportunity to bowl against best batsemn in the world along with folks like Malinga had fast tracked his career.And world-class fitness trainers,TV coverage, improved stadia and TV coverage pushed our youngsters to raise their fielding and overall fitness.

The fact remains that out of 09, '10, '12, '14 and '16 T20 WCs, India hasn't won any of them, that's all the WCs after IPL started. It's BCCI's job to scout talent and provide proper fielding training amongst other factors you mentioned. They have a ton of money for it. How is IPL improving the fielding standards in let's say Test cricket? That just doesn't make any sense. There is hardly any slip cordon in T20 but in Tests there is one almost at all times. IPL is a big money spinner for the BCCI, that's all.
 
IPL master race going Ad hominem in here:

Bedi has a point. T20 cricket ain't the real cricket. Test cricket is the true cricket. IPLers need to chill and stop attacking one of the best SLA ever.

I am no T20 fan. In fact, I rarely watch the IPL and only watch international matches. Tests are still the source of cricket that provides me the most entertainment.

But we need to be honest and admit that Test cricket is not able to survive on its own. It requires the money injected from the profits of Limited overs international and domestic competitions, especially domestic T20 cups. Other than India, Australia and England (to an extent SA), no other country is able to sustain Test Cricket without receiving financial assistance from its T20 and ODI matches.

Denying the truth is the real problem here. We need accept that test cricket is not as popular and may never be popular again. But cricket will live on in one form or another.
 
All formats of the game should be respected, Those dissing test cricket to defend T20s are as wrong as the obnoxious elite purists who don't consider formats other than test cricket as proper cricket
 
Bedi is loser. He may be history's greatest left-arm spinner, but he's still a whiny loser.

Indian team of today plays more Test matches than it did during his time (60s and 70s) and for that matter even compared to 80s and 90s. FACT.

Indian team of today wins more matches at home AND abroad than his team did. FACT.

This modern Indian team has achieved everything that is there is achieve in cricket: #1 Test ranking for an extended period of time, 50-over WC win and T20 WC win (and numerous good performances like reaching semi-finals and finals across range of tournaments). His team did nothing of the sort. FACT.

This team is more fit, more athletic and has a winning attitude. His team was not any of this. FACT.

IPL has a lot to do with many of these things.

So Bedi will do all of us a favor if he spoke less! :)
 
Bedi is loser. He may be history's greatest left-arm spinner, but he's still a whiny loser.

Indian team of today plays more Test matches than it did during his time (60s and 70s) and for that matter even compared to 80s and 90s. FACT.

Indian team of today wins more matches at home AND abroad than his team did. FACT.

This modern Indian team has achieved everything that is there is achieve in cricket: #1 Test ranking for an extended period of time, 50-over WC win and T20 WC win (and numerous good performances like reaching semi-finals and finals across range of tournaments). His team did nothing of the sort. FACT.

This team is more fit, more athletic and has a winning attitude. His team was not any of this. FACT.

IPL has a lot to do with many of these things.

So Bedi will do all of us a favor if he spoke less! :)

Great post. His whining has no bounds. Because of ipl only he got 1 time settlement cash of nearly 2 crores.
 
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Bedi would not make the current Indian team with his fitness and attitude. He is what no cricketer should look like.
 
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Bedi would not make the current Indian team with his fitness and attitude. He is what no cricketer should look like.

lol it would be very difficult for any 70 year old person to make the current Indian team :yk
 
Test cricket is in decline because of the change in the pace of life and a cultural shift in lifestyles. Most test cricket is played by poor teams, on poor pitches in front of nobody.
 
The fact remains that out of 09, '10, '12, '14 and '16 T20 WCs, India hasn't won any of them, that's all the WCs after IPL started. It's BCCI's job to scout talent and provide proper fielding training amongst other factors you mentioned. They have a ton of money for it. How is IPL improving the fielding standards in let's say Test cricket? That just doesn't make any sense. There is hardly any slip cordon in T20 but in Tests there is one almost at all times. IPL is a big money spinner for the BCCI, that's all.

T20 itself a format where luck matters a lot and that increases more in knock-out events like Worldcups. All you have to look at its how well they perfomed in the last two ones as far as I am concerned. Now coming to BCCI, we all know how Desi institutions work. IPL is a tournament with private franchise owners who push for win and hence higher standards in everything they could.And that improved the infrastructure and ground conditions a lot.Also the world-class fitness trainers, international players rubs on to the youngsters.You would be fooling yourselves if you claim you don't see the improvement in India's fielding after the IPL came in. I agree that we have been dropping some slip catches off late in tests but our ground fielding and catching especially in ODIs have been amazing in recent years.
And look at the importance pace bowlers are getting in IPL now. Mohammad Siraj,Natarajan who were nobodies before became instant millionaires after the auction.Basil Thampi who wanted to leave cricket and go to 'Gelf' is now a star and playing in Indian A team.Now the quickest way to IPL riches is to be a fast bowler and that would clearly inspire more and more Indian kids to be one.

I agree that BCCI started IPL with aim of more money rather than any good to Indian cricket.But just like how the British-built Railways helped India, IPL has improved lot of our aspects in cricket .

And don't forget the fact how it influenced the whole sporting eco-system in India and encouraged other sports to form their own leagues.So in net effect, IPL has been a big win for Indian sports.
 
lol it would be very difficult for any 70 year old person to make the current Indian team :yk

Bedi looked chubby and was the least athletic guy in the team. Not to forget his terrible fielding. His prowess with the bat is legendary.

Used to bowl slow pies during his day. His bowling would be taken to the cleaners if h bowled to modern day cricketers. He was lucky to play in an era where 3rpo was considered as fast scoring.
 
Bedi looked chubby and was the least athletic guy in the team. Not to forget his terrible fielding. His prowess with the bat is legendary.

Used to bowl slow pies during his day. His bowling would be taken to the cleaners if h bowled to modern day cricketers. He was lucky to play in an era where 3rpo was considered as fast scoring.

He is the infamous captain who declared the innings after 7 wickets against wi to prevent his bowlers getting hurt.
 
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lol it would be very difficult for any 70 year old person to make the current Indian team :yk

this is why I wish they invent the age reversal medicines and have these oldies back to their prime fitness and make them play with the modern players so that i can see them get beaten soo badly that they beg to go back to old age .... they just dont get it !
 
Bedi looked chubby and was the least athletic guy in the team. Not to forget his terrible fielding. His prowess with the bat is legendary.

Used to bowl slow pies during his day. His bowling would be taken to the cleaners if h bowled to modern day cricketers. He was lucky to play in an era where 3rpo was considered as fast scoring.

You are so freaking ignorant. Are you actually this naive? Do you actually believe the stuff that you just wrote? If Bedi were to play modern cricket, he would also have access to modern facilities, so he would be even better than he was in the 70s or 80s. If a guy like ashwin can make the modern team then Bedi would have absolutely no problems, in fact he would have ruled modern day cricket, I have observed that you are ignorant on many subjects
 
IPL is fun to watch sometimes and is good time pass for retired people, kids, old people and whole family so don't know why anyone who doesn't watch it has a problem with it..
 
You are so freaking ignorant. Are you actually this naive? Do you actually believe the stuff that you just wrote? If Bedi were to play modern cricket, he would also have access to modern facilities, so he would be even better than he was in the 70s or 80s. If a guy like ashwin can make the modern team then Bedi would have absolutely no problems, in fact he would have ruled modern day cricket, I have observed that you are ignorant on many subjects

Have to disagree a bit.

He seemed unfit and lazy compared to his contemporaries. The same would apply if he hopped into this generation.

I feel he would have either been found out or got injured with the increased workload modern cricketers have.

[utube]BxLfL1Drg6E[/utube]
 
This guy is such a hypocrite. On one hand he is complaining about T20 and IPL and on other hand he is grabbing the pension from BCCI that is mosty derived from IPL. If he so much hate IPL then why not refuse the pension cash. Seriously such oldies shouldnt get media coverage. Players like him always know how to complain about newer generations. What exactly has he done for India since he retired? Why not coach youngsters in academy? He doesnt want to do anything for newer generations but want to run his mouth for at least those who are trying to bring change. Such player should be taken off pension and let them rot. Was useless player during his play days anyways. Never really won a thing for India outside India when he was playing. Easily the most useless spinner for India ever. R Jadeja will easily go down as best SLA for India ever.
 
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