IPL 2013 - Indian Premier League 2013 - IPL 6

IPL 2013: 20 - 20 Fervor is Back!

IPL 2013 (IPL 6) is about to kick off now. Reschedule your appointments; postpone your other engagements because the ultimate entertainer IPL is here again and this time there is no escape…

The IPL (Indian Premier League) is here again and this time it comes with the promise of greater entertainment and fun. The stage is all set to host the grand event of IPL 2013. IPL 2013 will commence on the 3rd April 2013 and will be concluded on 26th May. There is cricket, there is glamour and then there is a lot of entertainment. IPL 2013 is all set to begin for the 6th time. So far there have been 5 seasons of IPL. The cricket frenzy is taking over and the entire country has been taken into the loop. If you live in India it is not possible for you to escape the hype and enthusiasm around. IPL is everywhere and it looks like it is going to be worth all the hype. As the IPL 2013 approaches we all prepare ourselves to an entertaining month ahead.

A total of 9 teams are going to play in IPL 2013. The teams are:

• Chennai Super Kings
• Delhi Daredevils
• Sunrisers Hyderabad
• Kings XI Punjab
• Kolkata Knight Riders
• Mumbai Indians
• Pune Warriors India
• Rajasthan Royals
• Royal Challengers Bangalore

The History of IPL:

Indian Premier League began in the year 2008 on the recently introduced Twenty20 style of cricket. When the twenty20 cricket began it caught the imagination of the cricket fans all over the world. Soon the IPL was introduced in the same format and it became an instant rage amongst the audience in India.

It was introduced by the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India). Cashing on the success of IPL season 1, it was followed by the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th seasons. This year is the 6th season of the IPL. In the IPL 2013, there are 9 teams that are contesting against each other. The champions of the IPL 2008 were the Rajasthan Royals who defeated the Chennai Super Kings. Though it is a fairly new concept yet it has caught on really fast and has made it this big.

The Great Auction of IPL 2013

The entire country looked forward to an interesting auction which saw 108 players go under the hammer. It looked like the Australians ruled the scene, as the maximum number of Aussie players were sold.

Glenn Maxwell was sold at an overwhelming amount USD 1 Million which made him the most expensive player of the IPL. Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke were the big names at the auction. All the owners of different teams of the IPL were present in the auctions.

Watch the IPL 2013 player auction here:

IPL 2013: The Marketing Strategies

The prime sponsor of IPL is the PepsiCo which has roped in the star choreographer Farah Khan to choreograph an advertisement for promoting IPL 2013. The IPL is been promoted on a wide scale and has covered almost all the mediums. Starting with the television it is been promoted in the radios, newspapers, magazines and many other sources of communication.

Such aggressive marketing is also one of the reasons of IPL catching up with the masses. This will be the 6th season of the IPL. Also, each team has its own song which gives them a special identity. A lot of effort has been put in to compose and write each of the songs.

Farah Khan giving dance sessions:

IPL 2013: The Venues

The major venues of the IPL 2013 are Jaipur, Dharamshala, Mohali, Delhi, Ranchi, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Raipur, Mumbai and Pune.

Raipur and Ranchi will make their debut as the IPL hosts in the IPL 2013. It is expected that all the stadiums will be full up to their capacity. The state agencies are ensuring that the audiences do not encounter any troubles and enjoy the matches smoothly.

The first match will be played between Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils on the 3rd April at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Special security arrangements are made to ensure the safety and security of all the spectators.

The Glamour Quotient in the IPL 2013

There will be a lot of fashion and glamour which will come with the whole package of IPL Season 6. The opening ceremony of IPL 2013 will be on the 2nd April in Kolkata at the Salt Lake Stadium. It is expected that the event will see a very high turnout of Bollywood stars. The highlights of this event are going to be the performances of Priyanka Chopra and Katrina Kaif. Rumor has it that Shah Rukh Khan has also roped in the international singing sensation Jennifer Lopez. The opening ceremony of IPL is already creating a buzz which is a successful platform to begin the IPL this season.

IPL and Controversies

Someone correctly said “There is no such thing as bad publicity”. Well we don’t know about other things but this really holds true for IPL. With its own share of controversies, IPL has been the talk of the nation ever since its introduction in the year 2008.

IPL 2012 was the most controversial of all the seasons and came into news for all the bad reasons. The series of controversies began in the inaugural year itself with Harbhajan Singh slapping Sreesanth during a cricket match. A News channel conducted a sting operation which showed a few cricketers fixing spots and accepting bribes. The whole nation felt cheated and the BCCI with immediate effect suspended all the players involved. Also, a RCB (Royal Challengers Bangalore) player was arrested on the charges of molestation of an American national, who later withdrew all charges against him. In spite of all these controversies Shahrukh Khan stole the show by engaging in a verbal spat with a security official last year. These are the few of the several controversies that troubled the different seasons of IPL.

We hope that we get all the anticipated action and entertainment so that there are many more IPL seasons to come. IPL is indeed a gift to all the cricket fans in India. As far as we are considered no amount of cricket is ever enough of us. Therefore, as India gears up for yet another season of IPL, we anxiously wait to see an entertaining month ahead.