The Indian Premier League is just a few days away. All the focus and attention of the cricket world has turned to South Africa. The IPL in its first season was successfull in creating a huge fan following. What was interesting to see was that the teams recieved good support from their home fans. This was the first time that the regional teams in India recieved good response from the fans. Amidst all this hype has anyone ever thought of the players who played the premier four day tournament of the country, the Ranji Trophy. Has anyone realised that these players had not recieved attention that they deserved?
A year before the start of the Indian Premier League, the Ranji Trophy had started being telecasted live on TV. Before 2006/07 season, cricket fans could keep in touch with the domestic game only through the news media. Previously, the domestic game as such was not marketed as well as the international. India had a huge cricket following population, or rather the Indian Team had it. Thanks to the IPL, ceratin domestic players have got exposure to foreign players, coaches etc. Hats off to Lalit Modi for introducing this concept. Prior to the IPL, alot of Ranji Trophy players got unnoticed. They never got the attention that they deserved from the fans. Many of these players played seasons of domestic cricket but could never make it to the top inspite of being consistent performers. It was just their luck that they were bon at a time India had some other great players. They were as we can say just unlucky. Two to three names instantly come to mind, those who were fantastic performers but never made it to the highest level, nor did they get the attention that they deserved. One can say that there was no internet or news channels when they played but they were certainly fantastic players who deserved a lot more.
Rajinder Goel was a left arm spinner who played for Haryana from 1958 to 1985. He has a fantastic record of 750 wickets from 157 matches at an average of just over 18. A player of this quality could not play for India as the team already had the famed spin quartet. Goel once said that he was born at the wrong time.
Padmakar Shivalkar was another unlucky player to miss out. He too had an exemplary record for Mumbai as he took 589 wickets in 124 matches at an average of 19.69. He too could not play at the highest level as India already had 4 great spinners. There are a few more names to this list and many other dometic players who served their teams for many years.
I sometimes wonder as too how many Indian Cricket fans actually know these players. They have served Indian Cricket tirelessly for years and have come up with memorable performances. If a concept like the IPL existed when they played then they would have become household names in India. This is why i really thank Lalit Modi for introducing the IPL. Many heroes at the domestic level will now get a chance to show their talent at the world stage and earn good fan following. As a cricket fan I salute all the players who play domestic cricket as they too work really hard to play the game the country loves the most. They are the ones who keep the sport going in India.
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