Goodbye to Glamour

By Gulu Ezekiel

The semifinal lineup of IPL II sends across an unmistakable message—glamour and money do not win you cricket matches.
It is no coincidence that three of the four teams who have been dumped by the wayside are those with a ‘Bollywood’ angle while the fourth, Mumbai Indians, are the most expensive franchise in the league.
The biggest flop show of this year’s event has been Kolkata Knight Riders who finished dead last. Enough has been written about the bungling manner in which the team was handled even before the IPL began. And for this co-owner Shah Rukh Khan must take a major share of the responsibility since he has the final say in all team matters.
Preity Zinta may not have so much clout with her Punjab XI Kings. But Zinta’s breakup with beau Ness Wadia—who bought the franchise for her last year as an expensive gift—must surely have had repercussions through the team.
Planting herself in the players’ dugout—from where Khan was banned last year by an ICC anti-corruption official—did not do her team any favours. All that dancing, prancing, pouting and gesticulating was surely a distraction for the players who have always resented the presence of anyone except the team members and support staff being in close proximity.
The same goes for Mumbai’s owner Nita Ambani, though at least she maintained a respectable silence, unlike the irritatingly animated Zinta.
The Rajasthan Royals were the rank outsiders last year and they came from nowhere to win the title. As is characteristic with the film world, that led to their jumping on the bandwagon. One hopes for their sakes that Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra do not do a Preity-Ness after this year’s team flop.
It must be nice to be a glamorous film star and have filthy rich boyfriends buy up cricket teams for your personal aggrandizement. But now at least the film world should realize that sports does not follow a script. And while glamour may attract media attention, it only takes away from the game.

www.sportshero.com (22/5/09)