The 14-Crore Dilemma: To Have or To Be Held?

The ruckus about the seediness plaguing the core of the Indian Premier League suddenly seems to have been muted. Not because the detrimental issues have been sorted out, but because something far more significant has emerged out of the whole ‘player auction’ hoopla.

To be honest however, I would have to say that for most parts I was quite alright with the way the player auction panned out. The ludicrousness of players being auctioned off like prized assets did rankle, but then what’s more ludicrousness in an event which has epitomised the very essence of controversy, muck and mud all through, ever since it began?

Anyhow, my problem wasn’t with the auctioning itself but about the extraordinarily high amount paid by Royal Challengers Bangalore to purchase Yuvraj Singh. There again, let me be very clear. My problem wasn’t about Yuvraj Singh being bid with such a huge price tag, but about the team – and its hypocrisy – that raised the stakes for him in the first place, so to speak. 

While I wouldn’t have minded any other team paying the same amount – or even more – to acquire Yuvraj Singh, it really bothers me that of all franchisees, it was RCB who actually bought him. Considering the tale of sordid economic affairs that the team owner has left in his wake in the aviation sector – that includes not paying the staff their remuneration for months on end – his bid to get one of the star cricketers into his cricketing team for 14-crores looked quite preposterous. 

His bid, thus begets the question that if he does have 14-crores to spare why not spare some to cover the overdue remuneration of his staff who rightfully deserve their dues? Or is that too much to ask?

It’s not wrong to want the best in one’s sporting team especially, when the context of the team primarily involves monetary exchange more than anything else. But when one’s infamy precedes one’s stature, it is expected that one would exercise a bit of discretion rather than going full tilt at acquiring something – even if something, or someone as in this case, is the best out there. If only to avoid the wagging tongues – including mine – that have risen in the wake of this splurging. 

I don’t want to judge nor is it my place to. But looking back at the wreck that has been left behind in the lives of all the staffers who weren’t recompensed, I can’t help but think about the 14-crore investment over and over again. 

Despite the problems plaguing the IPL at its nub, there’s no denying that the player auctions were avid topics of discussions and opinions. And come the actual proceedings of the IPL, eyes will continue to be riveted towards the event regardless of the strong vociferations against it being raised presently. 

I can’t help but think about those staffers, many of whom who would have enjoyed watching the IPL matches in the good times, supporting RCB because of affiliated loyalty. And of the transformation to now, where, burdened by who-knows-how-many problems, thinking about affiliations would probably be the furthest thing on their mind.

When I say all these, it’s not with the intention of creating a sorry picture about them or making them objects of pity. But about emphasising the fact that spending money doesn’t always bring about an overwhelming satisfaction to everyone but rather brings about the glaring discrepancies in one’s fulfilling of one’s varied – but equally prominent – professional commitments. 

And because, I can't resist the imp in me that