Source: Economictimes.indiatimes.com: The one-day internationals (ODI), or 50-overs cricket as it is played today, was serendipitously discovered in Melbourne exactly 40-years ago. What started off as an exhibition game intended as a bonus for spectators disappointed by a rain-abandoned Ashes Test, has remained cricket?s commercial lifeblood. India?s financial heft in matters cricket would have been inconceivable without the invention of this crunched up format, or the country?s success at the 1983 world cup . But now, like most men of the same age, ODI version of the game is going through a serious midlife crisis?something the game?s administrator, the International Cricket Council (ICC) or TV broadcasters loath to admit.
The sub-continental World Cup is ODI?s acid test. If the forthcoming flagship event staged in cricket?s commercial HQ isn?t an unqualified success, there will be ever-greater pressure on all stakeholders to reassess the viability of the format.
?Gone are the days when corporates were like our erstwhile maharajas who would patronise art for art?s sake. When there are plenty of other advertising options, companies don?t want to put money on ODIs just because it?s a form of cricket,? says advertising firm Madison World chairman and MD Sam Balsara .
Viewership is primarily dictated by Team India?s form. Only if it?s winning are people ready to watch.
WHO WANTS 50 OVERS?
Few other sporting formats have travelled so widely in such a short span of existence as ODIs. Tailor-made for Indian TV audience, it has been played in Toronto to Tangiers at the peak of its popularity.
However, ODIs have increasingly become a game of attrition where teams taking the least number of risks are rewarded. It neither satisfies the purists, nor is it racy enough to appeal to the T20 generation.
Signs of rot in the format have been manifest since 2007 when India crashed out of the World Cup held in West Indies in the very first round. India?s early exit only magnified the absurdly long scheduling of that tournament.
It seems the ICC hasn?t learnt the lessons from the Caribbean debacle. This edition of the World Cup promises to be equally tedious with 49 games being played over 42 days. According to Sanjay Manjrekar, former India cricketer-turned-TV pundit, there?s every sign that interest in ODIs is sagging. Although some ODIs do make money, the market seems to be plateauing.
Television rating points (TRP), a measure of the number of viewers watching a particular game on TV at a certain point of time, for ODIs have by and large headed southwards in the last four years, except for high-profile bilateral series such as India against Australia or South Africa.
For instance, the Asia Cup in 2008 featuring India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh (which India incidentally won) garnered piffling TRPs under two, while the home ODI series against South Africa last year averaged five, certainly boosted by the first-ever double century scored by Sachin Tendulkar.
?If the World Cup is a ratings failure, then the future won?t be rosy for ODIs,? says Shailendra Singh , joint MD of Percept , an advertising and celebrity management firm.
IPL CHALLENGE
Also, ICC hasn?t quite comprehended the commercial erosion caused by IPL. According to TRP rating agency TAM, IPL?s viewership in the third season increased 40%, and advertisers have begun to invest so heavily on the tournament that it is adversely impacting ad spends even for general entertainment channels, let alone other forms of cricket. There is increasing evidence that new cricket consumers such as women and children prefer to watch the IPL.
In fact, some women-centric brands such as L?Oreal, Dabur and P&G have decided to skip the World Cup and advertise during IPL4, which starts soon after the World Cup. Franchise owners having sunk in millions of dollars would be the happiest if the ODIs are done away with. It frees up the calendar significantly, and keeps their employees, the big international stars, fresher and increases their availability for the IPL and champions league T20 games.
?If my million-dollar player takes part in a meaningless seven-match ODI series and fractures his finger all my pre-IPL calculations go out of the window. ODIs aren?t doing anybody any good,? says the CEO of an IPL franchise.
BLAME IT ON GREED
If the 50-over game is fighting the battle of relevance, it is no small measure due to the greed of international and Indian cricket authorities in milking the cow dry. Far too many ODIs without a context have commoditised contests.
ICC?s decision to quietly bury the biennial Champions Trophy was a clearest indicator of ODI?s waning appeal. This much-derided tournament was part of ICC?s efforts to create multiple marquee properties like the four tennis grand slams. The tournament reflected everything that?s wrong with international cricket. It was utterly routine, perfectly perishable, posing as significant, and fooling nobody.
?ODI is not the villain, but ICC?s greed in running a meaningless tournament like Champions Trophy is,? says Nimbus Communications founder Harish Thawani . Nimbus runs Neo Sports and Neo Cricket channels, and owns telecast rights for matches organised by BCCI .
?Let the numbers do the talking. Ratings clearly show that the viewership for ODIs has in fact gone up in India despite all the adverse publicity. ODIs involving India have been averaging TRPs close to 8,? he claims.
Now, ODIs are broadcasters? delight. A 100-over match guarantees as many 45-second commercial breaks. That?s probably a reason why they scoff at the mere mention of ODIs losing steam.
Also having sold TV rights for all its tournaments including the 2015 ICC World Cup in Australia, it suits both the ICC and the broadcasters to put up a brave face.
?It is hoped that the ICC Cricket World Cup , being the game?s flagship event and cricket?s biggest prize, will add to reversing the poor perception of 50-over cricket,? ICC executive James Fitzgerald says.
The sub-continental World Cup is ODI?s acid test. If the forthcoming flagship event staged in cricket?s commercial HQ isn?t an unqualified success, there will be ever-greater pressure on all stakeholders to reassess the viability of the format.
?Gone are the days when corporates were like our erstwhile maharajas who would patronise art for art?s sake. When there are plenty of other advertising options, companies don?t want to put money on ODIs just because it?s a form of cricket,? says advertising firm Madison World chairman and MD Sam Balsara .
Viewership is primarily dictated by Team India?s form. Only if it?s winning are people ready to watch.
WHO WANTS 50 OVERS?
Few other sporting formats have travelled so widely in such a short span of existence as ODIs. Tailor-made for Indian TV audience, it has been played in Toronto to Tangiers at the peak of its popularity.
However, ODIs have increasingly become a game of attrition where teams taking the least number of risks are rewarded. It neither satisfies the purists, nor is it racy enough to appeal to the T20 generation.
Signs of rot in the format have been manifest since 2007 when India crashed out of the World Cup held in West Indies in the very first round. India?s early exit only magnified the absurdly long scheduling of that tournament.
It seems the ICC hasn?t learnt the lessons from the Caribbean debacle. This edition of the World Cup promises to be equally tedious with 49 games being played over 42 days. According to Sanjay Manjrekar, former India cricketer-turned-TV pundit, there?s every sign that interest in ODIs is sagging. Although some ODIs do make money, the market seems to be plateauing.
Television rating points (TRP), a measure of the number of viewers watching a particular game on TV at a certain point of time, for ODIs have by and large headed southwards in the last four years, except for high-profile bilateral series such as India against Australia or South Africa.
For instance, the Asia Cup in 2008 featuring India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh (which India incidentally won) garnered piffling TRPs under two, while the home ODI series against South Africa last year averaged five, certainly boosted by the first-ever double century scored by Sachin Tendulkar.
?If the World Cup is a ratings failure, then the future won?t be rosy for ODIs,? says Shailendra Singh , joint MD of Percept , an advertising and celebrity management firm.
IPL CHALLENGE
Also, ICC hasn?t quite comprehended the commercial erosion caused by IPL. According to TRP rating agency TAM, IPL?s viewership in the third season increased 40%, and advertisers have begun to invest so heavily on the tournament that it is adversely impacting ad spends even for general entertainment channels, let alone other forms of cricket. There is increasing evidence that new cricket consumers such as women and children prefer to watch the IPL.
In fact, some women-centric brands such as L?Oreal, Dabur and P&G have decided to skip the World Cup and advertise during IPL4, which starts soon after the World Cup. Franchise owners having sunk in millions of dollars would be the happiest if the ODIs are done away with. It frees up the calendar significantly, and keeps their employees, the big international stars, fresher and increases their availability for the IPL and champions league T20 games.
?If my million-dollar player takes part in a meaningless seven-match ODI series and fractures his finger all my pre-IPL calculations go out of the window. ODIs aren?t doing anybody any good,? says the CEO of an IPL franchise.
BLAME IT ON GREED
If the 50-over game is fighting the battle of relevance, it is no small measure due to the greed of international and Indian cricket authorities in milking the cow dry. Far too many ODIs without a context have commoditised contests.
ICC?s decision to quietly bury the biennial Champions Trophy was a clearest indicator of ODI?s waning appeal. This much-derided tournament was part of ICC?s efforts to create multiple marquee properties like the four tennis grand slams. The tournament reflected everything that?s wrong with international cricket. It was utterly routine, perfectly perishable, posing as significant, and fooling nobody.
?ODI is not the villain, but ICC?s greed in running a meaningless tournament like Champions Trophy is,? says Nimbus Communications founder Harish Thawani . Nimbus runs Neo Sports and Neo Cricket channels, and owns telecast rights for matches organised by BCCI .
?Let the numbers do the talking. Ratings clearly show that the viewership for ODIs has in fact gone up in India despite all the adverse publicity. ODIs involving India have been averaging TRPs close to 8,? he claims.
Now, ODIs are broadcasters? delight. A 100-over match guarantees as many 45-second commercial breaks. That?s probably a reason why they scoff at the mere mention of ODIs losing steam.
Also having sold TV rights for all its tournaments including the 2015 ICC World Cup in Australia, it suits both the ICC and the broadcasters to put up a brave face.
?It is hoped that the ICC Cricket World Cup , being the game?s flagship event and cricket?s biggest prize, will add to reversing the poor perception of 50-over cricket,? ICC executive James Fitzgerald says.
