Cricket isn't just a sport in India, it's a religion. Cricket in India is appreciated more than anywhere in the world, even though it's not the national sport. Every time you take a stroll on the street, you will hear some people talking about cricket and the latest happenings in the world of cricket, while the others will be watching it on their TV sets, or on their friends. Simply put, cricket and India cannot be separated at all, and it's a bond that cannot be broken. However, the question arises: how much of cricket can India handle? Yes, Indians love cricket, and yes, it is a well-renowned sport. Indian cricketers are considering God in my country, and are also worshiped sometimes, but the question is, if India is overdosed by cricket, will they handle it well, or would it result in boredom? We will find our answer in months, with the beginning of something spectacular on April 3rd, which marks the beginning of the sixth season on Indian Premier League: a cricket tournament in which Indian states battle for bragging rights and supremacy. The first five seasons have all been spectacular, with close finishes and results, but with the sixth season coming up, sponsors have promised something exciting and brilliant. Yet, the question still remains whethere Indians will be able to handle it? Here are some key-points of IPL (credit to mapofindia.com): The tournament begins on Apr 3rd, and ends on May 26th Nine teams will be participating in this tournament Suresh Raina has maximum total of runs (2254) in all the IPL seasons so far. He plays for the Chennai Super Kings. Lasith Malinga is the bowler with maximum wickets in IPL. As many as 83 players were sent back to pavilion by him. The highest ever score in IPL is 158*. Brendon McCullum is the player to have this record to his credit. Chris Gayle has hit maximum number of sixes (129) in the IPL so far. Gautam Gambhir is the highest paid IPL player till date. Kolkata Knight Riders spent $2.4 million to get him to play for the team in the year 2011. Lasting almost two months, the IPL guarantees to stress out the cricketers and the viewers. Remember, the last season of IPL, which was won by the Kolkata Knight Riders, barely got any publicity, and was probably the least watched IPL till now. Yet, with the pattern going on, IPL 6 is going to take over the record. The TRP's and the viewership has gone down from season to season, with IPL 1 being the most watched, and IPL 5 being the least viewed season ever. So, I took the challenge to ask random people if they knew about the IPL; and the common answer was no. Most weren't aware of the season starting, and some simply did not care. Overall, even though with plenty of commercials and advertisements, this IPL season has no hype whatsoever, which is a sure-shot formula for failure. While IPL presents a great stage to prove yourself to your team's selectors and your country, the overdose of IPL is not refreshing, and now, instead of a fun, sit-back-and-watch tournament, it seems like a chore. The days where friends and family used to rush home to watch the matches together are long gone, and now, no one even bothers about the score. I remember when I first attended an IPL match. The match I attended was the second ever IPL match, contested between Delhi Daredevils and Rajasthan Royals. It was an amazing match, full of sixes and fours. Personally, I'd love to go and watch a cricket match live again, but it seems that my fellow fans don't quite agree, as of now, there's absolutely no hype, and the stadiums will be nearly empty. India loves cricket; it really does, but the mega-cricket currently provided to the country, after the latest Australia test series and whatnot, is causing an imbalance in cricketing area in the country. To conclude this article, I'd simply like to ask my readers: is having so many seasons of IPL overkill, or is it a pleasure to watch two months of non stop cricket every single year?
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