Good to see sport limp its way back to field
After a total shutdown from mid-March because of Covid-19, the world of sports is beginning to show some signs of life. The German football league Bundesliga resumed on Saturday and Australia’s National Rugby League, suspended aming much controversy, restarts on May 28.
There is also talk of US Basketball (NBA) and Baseball (MLB) leagues beginning operations soon. While this is a sputtering start, loaded with trepidation and anxiety as to how the things will unravel, it is an important development nonetheless.
All sport that starts now will be without spectators in the stadium, for audiences on TV and on digital platforms till such time that the Covid-19 threat recedes entirely. That is unlikely to happen till a vaccine is found, which may take anything between 10-24 months experts reckon.
Sports bereft of ‘live’ spectators is unnatural obviously. Some experience of this exists from matches played in March (Australia v New Zealand ODI, for instance, before the series was suspended) but nobody is sure how fans, sponsors et al will react to the experience.
As a one-off, or even a couple of tournaments, this would be problem free. Big question is whether sport without spectators has sustainability? Will fans be interested in watching sport on TV and online while players perform in front of empty stadia?
Technology is redefining — at breakneck speed — how we consume information/entertainment, which includes sport. Those at the back and front end of technological developments are convinced that a ‘real life’ spectator experience can be simulated.
This has given those in the business of sport, most importantly broadcasters, a sense of bullishness about winning over fans. This is supplemented by the belief that in a postCovid-19 world, human beings will in any case have to make several fundamental changes in how they live life, including how to consume sport.
I did a dipstick survey for my own edification by posting a question on my Twitter handle asking followers how they’d react to sport being played without spectators in the stadium on a sustained basis. The options given were: (1) Yes, just want sport back (2) Sorry, not my scene (3)
Doesn’t matter either way (4) I’ll wait, see and decide. Interestingly, 58 per cent of 648 people who had voted at the time of writing this piece went with option 1. This is indicative of how hungry sports fans are to see action, whichever way!
As I write this, matches scheduled in for Saturday in the Bundesliga football league had yet to begin. What happens in this tournament and some others resuming over the next few weeks, should provided harder evidence of whether fans approve of this kind of sports consumption or not.
Meanwhile, let me turn to the issue which has been uppermost in the minds of not just Indian fans, players and administrators, but their counterparts all over the cricket world: What’s the deal with the IPL? Will it be played this year or not? If so, is it likely it could replace the T20 World Championship?
I have no concerete answers to these posers, but some interesting developments have taken place last week. In an interview to a national newspaper, chief coach Ravi Shastri stressed that at this time, more importance should be given to domestic cricket and bilateral series than international tournaments.
Since the IPL is technically a domestic tournament, this is significant. Read in conjunction with Shastri’s view that bilateral series should be favoured (in this case, the
India v Australia series Down Under scheduled from November), the line of thinking in India’s cricket establishment comes through.
On May 28 is the ICC (video) meeting, to discuss the Future Tours Programme, including the T20WC, in light of Covid19. Considerng finances, logistics and the mood of the stakeholders, whispers suggest that the T20WC could be shifted to another year, possibly 2022 (since India will host the 2021 edition).
Whispers also add that Australia, who were to host the T20 WC this year, are not averse to the idea. The next 10 days should see hectic activity even in isolation between the game’s administrators!