Sunil Gavaskar made a very pertinent point on Sunday evening when he said that every cricket board has enough money to buy covers and get entire grounds covered when there is bad weather around. By not doing so, you are exposing yourselves to weather conditions and if it rains in the middle of a game, it could take another hour or more to get the ground back in shape to play. Gavaskar cited the Eden Gardens example, where the entire ground is under covers if there is a threat of bad weather.
The question isn’t only about money. The question is also about intent and about taking the fan seriously. Administrators, more often than not, aren’t really bothered. With broadcast monies coming in, ticket sales aren’t really important and that’s where the fan becomes the dispensable part of the whole equation. Facilities are poor and the mindset is to take the fan for granted.
What these administrators don’t understand is that it is because of the fan that the broadcaster is paying top dollar. South Africa will make over $50 million from the Indian tour because the Indian fan consumes the sport and that’s what enables the broadcaster to monetise it. It is ultimately the fan who stays true to the sport and is responsible for bringing in the riches.
By making basic mistakes like not covering the entire ground, leading to the abandonment of the game, authorities end up depriving fans. For every spectator who went to the ground yesterday, it was time and energy lost. The return on investment was zero, and he or she has every right to feel deprived. Much more than the players, it was the fans who would feel hard done by what happened. In modern hyper-commercialised sport, such apathy isn’t acceptable. You need to be prepared to deal with every eventuality, for only then will the sport continue to be economically viable. With multiple alternatives available, in no time the fan would move to something else and cricket would be poorer because the sport has lost a passionate supporter.
Just like broadcasters have a say on scheduling and more, maybe it’s time they start insisting on proper covers to deal with the weather. You need to make the sport more consumer-friendly and unless there is effort from the administration, it is important that they be given the necessary nudge. For the moment though, there was no game in Durban on Sunday night, making it a complete waste of time for everyone who turned up.