Riding the new wave

NEW DELHI: It's early days yet, but be prepared for a big shake-up when the transfer window opens before the next IPL. Unlike the auctions before this inaugural edition, franchisees won't be hedging their bets on theoretical possibilities anymore, leading to less skewed pay structures. A big factor in this is the rise to prominence of some previously unknown, lesser-paid domestic cricketers for whom the IPL is fast becoming bread and butter, a perfect antidote to the frustrating anonymity of the domestic circuit that prodded the Indian Cricket League exodus.
Owners keeping a close eye on key performers will now be hastily realigning priorities.The icon players have been financially cushioned by the laws of the auction but it's clear now that at least some top-draw names ��� whose degree of adaptability to the new format was endlessly debated before the tournament ��� are simply not cut out for T20.
The fact the some players went for astronomical sums in this edition's auction while others had to get by with moderately decent salaries, in spite of greater T20 worth, has been termed illogical. But now it seems that in the long run, the format itself may be responsible for making the event the greatest leveller in Indian cricket for a while.
Just look at the Manpreet Gonys, Wriddhiman Sahas and Abhishek Nayars. It might not be clear yet who will win the tournament but some questions can be answered with relative ease: For example, would you rather have a VVS Laxman in your T20 squad or a Shikhar Dhawan? There's a distinct likelihood that some catchment area players will be earning much more than their minimum $50,000, and some U-22 performers might end up earning more than $20,000 in the next edition.
Delhi Daredevil Dhawan, for example, with three half-centuries and an average above 50, could think about earning close to the $250,000-$400,000 bracket depending on his form in the remaining games: still some distance behind the likes of, say, Rohit Sharma ($750,000) on the money stakes, but within reach when it comes to T20 batting dependability.
Some veterans like Yusuf Pathan (who has already played in India's T20 squad) and Rajat Bhatia could also stand to gain on the basis of performance alone, something the domestic circuit would never allow.
For these players, though, the IPL is not all about the money. Last year, Wriddhiman Saha got so nervous that his parents had come to watch him in a Ranji game that he botched up both behind the stumps and with the bat. Thrust into the IPL deep end, he seems to have conquered his nerves, a sign of cricketing maturity. Throw in a couple of seasoned campaigners for advice in the dressing room and the future seems bright.
The rise of seamers Manpreet Gony (Team Chennai) and Ashok Dinda (KKR) is also interesting. Although a clutch of young domestic players have made an impact, apart from Shikhar these two look like the early possibilities to graduate to the national T20 squad. It's anybody's guess, however, whether they will actually do so.
With an economy rate of 6.00 and speeds close to the 140kph-mark, Dinda has been a valuable asset for Sourav Ganguly. Gony, too, has been thrust suddenly into the spotlight, having made his Ranji Trophy debut this season, and he has been helped by Dhoni's astute handling. Apart from his accuracy with the ball, it's also clear he is capable of some big-hitting in pressure situations, like in the Chennai-Delhi rematch.
What happens to these players, and others like Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan, Swapnil Asnodkar, Yo Mahesh, leggie Dinesh Salunkhe (who is yet to play a first-class game!) and the others after the IPL? Can they return with ease to the staid domestic grind, sans the spotlight and the crowds? Some have expressed fears about young T20 stars giving the first-class game short shrift, but that seems unlikely: The BCCI has to be kept happy, after all.
Ganguly offered a shrewd perspective of the situation a few days back, saying, "Let's not jump up and down too much at the performance of these youngsters in T20. As a player, I'd love to see them perform in five-dayers and 50-over games. That's where the real test lies."
While that is true, it's equally likely the IPL may finally pave the way for T20 'specialists'. Maybe someday we might even see an independent T20 team, as opposed to the F50 team, if you will, or the Test team?
Whether fresh faces with T20 verve will keep cropping up in every edition of the IPL, though, will depend a lot on how all the money is filtered back into the game.