Kochi braces up for battle royale

Massive billboards placed in vantage areas are a sign of the cricket fever that soars well above the 37’ degree temperature in the city. But they are also symbols of the changing sporting character of the city that till now quenched its desire for quality cricket through a handful of one-dayers.

Kochi’s sporting atmosphere has always been dominated by football and volleyball and the tradition held its own even when Kochi players Tinu Yohannan and S Sreesanth appeared in India colours. Amidst the storm that cricket kicked up in the rest of India, especially in the last two decades, cricket has remained a distant cousin of football and volleyball in this part of the country.

Football World Cups have traditionally been received with a my-event attitude here while its cricketing equivalent has failed to kick up, with the exception of the 2011 edition, the same level of mass excitement.

The heroics of Kerala Police, Kerala State Electricity Board, Kochin Port Trust, FACT and Travancore Titanium in various sporting fields contributed massively to the long chain of stories from the field.

Even the triumphs of Brazil and Argentina were celebrated with such fervour here that you could easily confuse the streets in the city for some in Rio de Janeiro or Buenos Aires.
Amidst all this, the average cricket fan had to be content with sporadic wins in Ranji Trophy and the isolated sparks Sreesanth offered to match those glorious tales football and volleyball offered.

But come April 9, the scene might change once and forever. The nicely decked up Jawaharlal Nehru stadium will host the first IPL match in Kerala, between Tuskers and RCB.

The day will also be a sort of triumph for the cricket fans in the city who till now might have watched, perhaps with a tinge of envy, the other South Indian cities with cricketing pedigree such as Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad proudly presenting their own IPL teams.

“Yes, the IPL matches could change the cricketing landscape in Kerala. I am sure a lot of youngsters will be keen to take up the game post IPL. Now, they have a team and a set of stars to look up to and take inspiration from.

“The infrastructure might see a great level of improvement. Hopefully, the Kochi team will do well in the IPL so that the enthusiasm will remain high,” said TC Mathew, secretary of the Kerala Cricket Association.