Ways in which the IPL can be revamped

If you are provided a bowl of cereal on a Sunday morning, you’ll pretty much love it. But if you are provided the same bowl of ordinary cereal every other day, you’ll pretty much be displeased at the idea of consuming the same dish every day. You’ll ask for some variations or for some changes in the dish.

The same thing goes for the kind of sports you watch. The same format, the same match-ups will probably bore you if you aren’t provided with an exciting twist in the tale or with a fresher appeal to the product. Yes, my fellow sports enthusiasts - I’m talking about the same dish that BCCI provides us each year without any significant variation, the IPL.

The IPL is in its eleventh season right now, and one can surely say that the fanfare is much less than the previous editions. One would say that the IPL has run its course, and it’s a money-spinning business for BCCI. The fans still love cricket and want the excitement of IPL to engulf them, but it’s just too bland, so to speak.

It’s high time they revamp the structure, and the format, and create a new buzz for the product. Here are some ways they can do so:

Honorary Mention: Introduce associate countries like Ireland, Afghanistan or the Netherlands to compete in the tournament.

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#4 Introduce home and away jerseys

RCB competing in the green jersey instead of the usual red one

The IPL was basically modelled after the English Premier League, and BCCI can use the similar concept of two jerseys for the IPL. The idea of home and away jerseys can bring a fresh element to the game and provides new merchandise to attract fans and bring in the desired revenue.

It also removes confusion when teams with similar coloured jerseys compete against each other, like in clashes between the Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals.

There are several sports tournaments in the world where there is an established system of dual jerseys. The IPL can lead the charge and introduce such a system in cricket.

#3 Introduce a mid-season transfer

Mid-season transfers are part and parcel of every domestic sports league. So why should IPL be left out of its ambit? Auctions are loved by the fans and mid-season transfers are just going to add more buzz and feel to the product.

Imagine Virat Kohli starting a season with the Royal Challengers Bangalore and being transferred to the Super Kings squad mid-season. This will provide opportunities to players who haven't been able to shine in the first half of the tournament to get transferred to newer teams to start afresh there.

Teams lagging behind in the competition could use such mid-season transfers to bring in new players, and add more variety to their squads.

#2 More points for winning away games

The matches in the IPL are played on home and away basis. Away games assume huge significance since visiting sides have a tough task at hand battling the odds. The pitch, the overwhelming crowd support, and the general conditions make it difficult for the visiting sides to sneak a win.

Given the arduous task at hand, the points system needs to be altered a bit. The sides winning away games should get 3 points each, while teams winning home games should get 2 points each. This system will prove to be a huge factor in driving fan investment towards the matches.

The home crowds will have even more reason to get behind their sides. A feeling of 'defending the home turf' will generate amongst the fans as well as the players.

#1 A final after a final

Another ingenious way to create more buzz for the product is to introduce another match after the final featuring the newly-crowned Champions facing the Best of the Rest XI. The Best of the Rest XI would include the 11 best players of the tournament across the other seven franchises.

For instance, the Best of the Rest XI of IPL 2018 would include the likes of Rishabh Pant, Lokesh Rahul, Kane Williamson, Sunil Narine and others, going up against the current IPL Champions, the SuperKings from Chennai.

This additional clash would create further excitement amongst the fans, and could obviously lead to some interesting match-ups.