IPL 2018 burnout: Are Delhiites losing interest in watching it?

Ever since the inception of the Indian Premier League in 2008, the months of April-May have been synonymous with cricket. Delhiites would head to restaurants to watch the matches on giant screens and also to snap up the great IPL deals on food and beverage. This year, however, it seems that interest in IPL has waned in Delhi — for a number of reasons, including the consistently poor showing by the city’s team — and so the deals, too, are on the decline.

“Delhiites no longer want to watch the matches when their own team struggles to even reach the play-off. When the customer is not interested in something, there’s no point running deals around it,” says Manish Sharma, owner, Molecule And The Drunken Botanist.

A recent report by The Economic Times suggests that television viewership of IPL has been declining, and that fewer people are watching it in 2018 compared to h 2017 season. One of the reasons for this decline, according to a recent article by Scroll.in, is that matches go on till late night (11.30pm-midnight), and viewers usually switch off by 11pm.

Delhiites believe there are many more reasons behind this decline in interest. Neeraj Sharma, owner, Philtre — The Bistro, says, “When IPL began, it was India’s only sports franchise league. But with the promotion of other sports such as hockey and kabaddi, IPL is not the centre of attention anymore.”

Also, “most people only watch IPL during semi-finals and finals, as they find routine league matches boring”, says h J in owner Decode.

The lack of reinvention in IPL is a major problem, says Anand Dixit, a 25-year-old model. “IPL has stagnated. There have hardly been any changes in the format in 10 years,” he says.

Anshul Pratap, a 19-yearold medical student, says that IPL’s novelty has worn off, “and Indians now are slowly gravitating towards football, a more interesting and much more popular sport”.

When IPL began, it was India’s only sports franchise league. But with the promotion of other sports such as hockey and kabaddi, IPL is not the centre of attention anymore.

NEERAJ SHARMA,

RESTAURATEUR

This year, it seems that interest in IPL has waned in Delhi — for a number of reasons, including the consistently poor showing by the city’s team