Goin' For The Toss

After weeks of secrecy bordering on paranoia, Patel finally unveiled his plans for pro cricket and "fast 'n furious global action" last week. Eight teams (New York, New Jersey, Washington DC, Florida, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Texas) will be divided into two leagues with five international players on each side. The teams will play a compressed 20-over version of the game to be completed in three hours flat. A little more time than catching a flick on the weekend but at $6 a shot, half the price of a movie ticket. Patel calls it the "new third generation version", which his studies show will be popular in the United States because it will bring the thrill with the frills. The matches will be treated as "family affairs" with vendors for desi khana, clowns for children, dhols and tablas for the young dancers in the arena. Long-suffering spouses and cranky children will be gainfully occupied while the dads watch the real action.

So here's the deal: Patel claims that 7. 5 million people in the US watch or play cricket, a figure he says is based on market research.He has sunk "a small fortune" already on market research and buying poll numbers from assorted vendors, he told Outlook. There are 30,000 people across the US, mainly in immigrant communities from South Asia, Australia, the Caribbean and Britain, who he calls "serious" players. Meaning they actually devote 15-20 Saturdays to the game in the summer. There are 70,000 other "recreational players" who don't play that much but are serious enough to make the effort to watch. It is this base on which Patel expects to build his empire. How reliable is the research is open to question but the venture is big enough to have attracted major investors whom Patel will not name to maintain secrecy of business deals. Research was done even on team colours—purple was a big no, no for New York while Chicagoans loved it. The Big Apple is more a red, white and blue town.

"We are aspiring to be the NFL of cricket in America," says soundbite meister Patel. "We have put the pedal to the metal. We have the good ambassadors of cricket to spread the message." Anshuman Gaekwad has been recruited as executive director while Michael Holding, the former pacer from West Indies, is a board member. But what about TV rights and other minor details? Without cash, there's no dash. Patel says his partner Vimal Verma is about to launch a new TV channel aimed at second generation South Asians which will have exclusive rights to televise the matches. Another businessman, Kamal Verma, has already bought operating rights for all eight teams but individual teams will be independent franchises. As for ad revenues, the organisers hope to rope in the big spenders and as the crowds grow so will the ad dollars. Their hope: the World Cup was the most watched pay-per-view event at $30 a match, so there is hope. Given a chance, Patel reels out statistics—he will employ 32 disciplines of marketing to "spread the word" but won't say what or how. Besides fliers in your local Indian grocery store, TV and radio ads will flow. He's also employed two PR firms, but the American newspapers have largely ignored Patel's big announcement.

So, is he really spending the money he says he is? Cost-cutting is already evident in the quality of the jerseys, logos and the general tackiness that manages to creep into many desi ventures. The exhibition match had a shoddy feel, according to a sports writer, with local players treated like fillers and extras. The commentary was worse than pedestrian and even after Jadeja was out, the announcer kept referring to the "Indian captain". With the ICC still refusing to recognise Patel's matches, and the BCCI erupting into periodic fits of anger, organisers have a lot of work to do. Jadeja said the ICC had given Patel a green signal while expressing its inability to fund the matches. That has been misinterpreted by some as a refusal to recognise the matches.

As for the BCCI and top Indian players, there are no hard contracts. Even Sachin Tendulkar is not contracted, says Jadeja. "The Indian system is different. The BCCI is a monopoly and if you want to play for India, it is the only organisation." Perhaps, the BCCI can't see anyone sharing its domain, even over the summer holidays. Big name players will be crucial to Pro Cricket's popularity because second-rungers won't sustain interest. Reports say the stars will get $60,000 a season, a tiny sum in the American landscape but tidy enough for a summer holiday when many players aren't otherwise engaged.