The Indian Premier League (IPL), more like a two-month festival in India, is undoubtedly one of the most loved sporting leagues in the country, and probably among other cricketing nations. However, amidst this league, is the essence of cricket still the same?

Established by the BCCI in 2007, the IPL may have initially aimed at globalising cricket and fostering its promotion. Yet, except for the fact that BCCI now holds influence in international cricket, globalisation is nowhere to be seen.

In the present scenario, the IPL is clearly a cash machine for the BCCI. Players, it seems, participate primarily for financial gain rather than for the purity of the sport. Reflecting on cricket’s earlier days, recalling it as a gentleman’s game, steeped in tradition and elegance, the true essence of cricket resides in its international contests, in its rivalries, such as The Ashes and the Battle of the Titans and in the favourite rivalry of us Indians, IND vs PAK. Doesn’t it feel like the IPL altered this narrative?

For the naive cricketing fans today, the IPL season becomes synonymous with Indian team selection. The perception that IPL performance directly correlates with international worthiness is prominently seen among Indian fans. But this perception is fundamentally wrong, the difference in player pressure between franchise cricket and international cricket is worlds apart, there even exists a carelessness in franchise cricket which allows you to experiment but the same thing cannot prevail in international cricket.

Even one of the greatest bowlers of all time, Dale Steyn, said, “cricket gets forgotten in IPL,” showing how the cricketing landscape has been changed. The recent expansion of IPL teams further into 10 talks about this narrative, raising questions about motives—isn’t it solely about maximising profits? In essence, while the IPL has undeniably revolutionised cricket and acts as a league for cricketers to practice, and allows cricketing fans to go mad over it for 2 months, it’s important that as viewers we should not sideline where the true cricket lies and should ensure that the sport’s true essence and international significance remain intact.