Indian Premier League - IPL / Editor / 26 May 2008 / 2 Comments

Frank Gregan pens the first of his columns which look at the hot topics in cricket. He kicks off with a look at the IPL and why he's cheering on the Kolkata Knight Riders

Legislation comes into force this week that requires all clairvoyants and spiritualists to advise their clients that they are entering into a conversation that is for entertainment purposes only.

The law will be enforced by the Office of Fair Trading and is set to ensure that the vulnerable in our society are not misled and take action as a direct consequence of a consultation with 'The All Seeing Eye of Gypsy Rose.' I would like to point out at this juncture that I am not clairvoyant and if I was ever visited by the spirit of a punter sadly departed who informed me of the winner of the 4.30 at Haddock I would be keeping the information strictly between the ghost, myself and my Betfair account!

However, had I visited a fortune teller twenty years ago and been informed that some time in the future I would become a fan of Chennai Superkings I would have poured scorn from a high on such nonsense. I have always attempted to keep myself fit and smoking has been a habit that I have as much time for as Terry Wogan has for the Eurovision voting system.

Twenty years ago the Chennai Superkings could only have been cigarettes and the same could be said about the Rajasthan Royals. The Kolkata Knight Riders would have made a great title for a low budget Bollywood action film starring David Hasselhoff put together by Dyslexic Production Ltd. Come on, who authorised such a pathetic name change based on phonetics! I accept it has always been called Kolkata in the Bengali language but it just does not roll off the tongue. We Brits have endured endless episodes of 'It Aint Half Hot Mum' in order to be able to exercise our right to name entire provinces of India on a whim. To be fair, we do tend to ignore the changes. When was the last time you heard someone order a Lamb Chennai at your local curry house? Thought not, it will always be called Madras particularly after eight pints of lager!

The truth of the matter is, no matter how much I ridicule the event, I am totally hooked on the Indian Premier League. I used to play a ten over a side game when I was in Australia and it was referred to as a 'hit and a giggle.' I adopted that attitude when 20/20 first came onto the scene but it has won me over. The purists amongst the pundits will have us believe that there is no real place for 20/20 in the game. The terms they use to try to put it down are, 'entertainment, a bit of fun, cricket eye candy and a batsman's paradise.' I don't disagree with the statement, I disagree with the sentiment. Being entertained watching a batsman cream a six over long off's head followed by a quick cut to a well endowed cheerleader (female I hasten to add, but to each his own) is something I enjoy. It's not the be all and end all, I still enjoy all the other forms of the game but it is a very welcome addition.

Chennai to win the tournament have been traded as big as [12.5] and as short as [3.7]. I think a match should be currently achievable at [5.8] and I'll be backing them. They face a big game on Tuesday night (3.30 our time) in Hyderabad against the Deccan Chargers who won the corresponding fixture three weeks ago. They've also lost Michael Hussey and Jacob Oram to international duty and suffered a morale bruising defeat to The Royals on Saturday which will not have helped their cause. However, in MS Dhoni, Stephen Fleming and Muralitharan they have three great cricketing characters that can help them come good at the business end of the event.

Finally, I would like to point out that I have not seen Chennai winning the IPL in my crystal ball and wish to declare that I do not consider myself to be clairvoyant. As for being in touch with people on the other side, well, it is a question I often ask myself whilst writing these articles. Is there anybody out there.................?

Tags: IPL betting, Kolkata Knight Riders