IPL 2020: Broadcasters considering possibility of commentary from home

The thirteenth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) may see commentators covering matches from their homes after a successful trial of the same was conducted during the Solidarity Cup 3TC.

The Hindi commentary of the 3TC game, held in South Africa, was done by Irfan Pathan, Deep Dasgupta and Sanjay Manjrekar from their residences in Baroda, Kolkata and Mumbai respectively.

Along with the commentators, the crew too logged into the game from different parts of the country with their director, who was in Mysore.

This virtual commentary was a success and the broadcasters, Star Sports, will be looking to replicate this model for IPL 2020, which is most likely to be held in UAE later this year.

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'Commentary from home in the IPL will be a massive challenge'

Speaking to PTI, Irfan Pathan said that the experience of commentating from home was extraordinary, although there exists the possibility of technological glitches arising.

“It was an extraordinary experience though we were worried throughout because the internet speed can fluctuate and that affects the voice quality. Anything can happen anytime in live cricket and with technology not fully in your control, it can be tricky but Star did a wonderful job,” Pathan told PTI.

The former Indian all-rounder also lauded the broadcasters Star for their impeccable management, which ensured that there were no glitches.

“Star is usually very thorough with its planning and execution but commentary from home in the IPL will be a massive challenge,” said the former pacer, who had to lock himself in a room to not get distracted on the job while his son knocked on the door from time to time.

My new commentary box:). #Newnormal #commentry #covidera pic.twitter.com/5bIkg8hFa1

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) July 18, 2020

A broadcasting industry expert enumerated the advantages of commentary from home and spoke about how remote production has evolved over the years and is now at par with on site production.

“Remote production has evolved a lot, and technology has enabled it to be to be at par with on site production if not better. Commentary from home is a step forward in that regard and that way anyone can log in from anywhere. It opens up the world to you,” the expert said.

The expert also feels that the commentator may have a better viewing experience at his disposal with s many as twenty-five different camera angles in place. He believes that the commentator will be able to view the match better at home than on the ground.

“Being on the ground is important but when you have a production in place where the commentator could see everything that he would see from the ground, at times with as many as 25 camera angles at his disposal, he can even see more than he would normally see at the ground,” the expert added.

Meanwhile, the IPL is all set to be hosted in the UAE, with the tournament expected to begin at the end of September. Earlier, the IPL had been postponed indefinitely due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. However, it seems that the 13th edition of the IPL might finally come to fruition.

In fact, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has officially requested the Government of India for permission to conduct the IPL in UAE and a decision on the future of IPL 2020 is expected to be taken this week.