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Saturday, April 19, 2008

The Beginning

Last night we finally had the beginning of the Premier League. Although Australian television did not broadcast the opening ceremony, it was apparently an extravagant affair. The Bangalore Stadium was filled to capacity as around 55,000 people witnessed the first match of the tournament. Due to restrictions following months of controversies as restrictions were placed on news agencies by the Premier League. As a result of these restrictions, photographers boycotted the match and no photos were made available for newspapers or websites.

In Australia, Ten is broadcasting the games, however they are going to be delayed broadcasts. Currently Chennai is playing Mohali, but coverage on Australian television won't begin until the game is over, three and a half hours from now. Looks like there's going to be a lot of late nights in the coming months..

Last night saw the Kolkata Knight Riders demolish the Bangalore Royal Challengers, thanks to Brendon McCullum breaking Cameron White's previous record of the highest score in a Twenty20 match. McCullum hit 158 runs in just 73 balls including ten 4's and thirteen 6's. In reply, the Royal Challengers were bowled out in 15.1 overs for only 82 runs, a disappointing start to their season.

After watching the first game, I would have to say that I ended the night somewhat disappointed. There has been so much money poured into every aspect of the tournament, but it just didn't feel the same as watching a One Day International. The team kits, camera quality, scorecards, ground, and competition all seemed to be lacking. Everything was there, but it didn't seem right..

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I definitely agree that the team kits are not as professional as they could be... but thats the beauty of 20/20 :). This tournament seems more like fun than serious international cricket, but that's why its so fun to watch.

Late nights are definitely catching up with me, but it won't stop me from cheering on my Hyderabad team tonight!