Heartbroken: IPL will never be the same again without CSK

On 14 July the Supreme Court-appointed Justice Lodha committee came down hard on the IPL, in an attempt to clean up the game and rid it of corruption. Gurunath Meiyappan and Raj Kundra – tainted officials of CSK and RR – were banned for life from cricketing activities. But what came as the biggest surprise was the suspension of both the franchises for two seasons. The shaken fan-base of the Super Kings is still trying to come to terms with the verdict. CSK are, undisputedly, the most followed team in India. A recent Facebook study showed an infographic - a map of India - where every IPL team’s fans were mapped based on the following they have throughout the country. And it was all yellow. [caption id=“attachment_2344020” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  The loud and proud Chennai fans are still trying to come to terms with Lodha committee’s verdict. File photo: Getty[/caption] While every team, apart from Delhi Daredevils, was most supported team in their home state, in places which don’t have a representative team, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s CSK – the team that has been in six of the eight IPL finals - got all the love. “CSK epitomises two of the things I love – Chennai and cricket. So my first reaction was one of dejection and complete sadness obviously,” says Madhan Rajasekharan, 27-year-old analyst based out of Bangalore and a long-time follower of CSK. “I have built a very strong emotional connect to the team and that has only increased after repeated success of the side. Apart from losing out on sheer entertainment, this feels like losing something a lot closer.” Even fans who do not have a big affinity to IPL as such, felt the effects of the verdict. “I’m not a big fan of the IPL but CSK as a team is still close to my heart,” says Harikumar Venkatramani, a Chennai-based teacher. “It’s simply because I love the city and I love the way CSK played as a team, more than anything. If CSK as a team is out of the league I have lost the only reason I had to follow IPL.” Ananthasubramanian Narayanan, 30-year-old software professional, shares the same love for the city and the players. “The hashtag #NoCSKNoIPL (which was seen on Twitter after the verdict) described the kind of emotions we were going through. Of course, the IPL can still run without CSK and Chennai, but it would lose a lot of fans from the CSK base.” “Without a Chennai based franchise, the tournament could mean absolutely nothing for me,” said Ananth. One of the possibilities that have been discussed is introduction of new franchises to replace CSK and RR, which would mean players from the current squad of these teams, could go under the hammer again. ‘Stunned and shocked,’ Venkateswaran, a 27-year-old management graduate from Chennai, says IPL’s following from his city will definitely reduce if the franchise’s star players go elsewhere. “CSK has always had the same core of stars, and if it so happens that they move to other teams, fans in the city are bound to lose interest. Personally, there is no chance I will follow the league with the same interest as before,” he said. [caption id=“attachment_2190947” align=“alignright” width=“380”]  Everybody loves the yellow brigade. File photo: BCCI[/caption] Tina Kishnani, a 25-year-old HR executive, clearly identifies with the current CSK squad. “Players like Dhoni, (Suresh) Raina, (Ravichandran) Ashwin have become so much part of our home. The anthems like the chants of ‘Whistle podu’, the deafening roar when Dhoni walks out at Chepauk, it might all be in the past now. I’ve always supported the entire team. Now if the core of Raina, Faf du Plessis, Brendon McCullum split up, it seems like a nightmare,” she said. Harikumar echoed her views. “I care about the city team and ideally would prefer our players to opt out for the next couple of years, but I know that’s not realistic.” Madhan was a little more optimistic, hoping the team just changes ownership and can retain the players. “The fan in me still believes the same set of players will get to play maybe under a different name. It would be very bad to see Dhoni play elsewhere; if that happens I would quit watching the league.” The Lodha committee, however, made it a point that cleaning up the game was the bigger priority. “Players will not be attached to a franchise which has been suspended. We thought that if cricket is bigger than individuals then financial loss to players and franchises is not of significance," he had said while defining the punishment for the parties involved. Can the fans take such a distant, big-picture view? “From an ethical standpoint, I agree it sends a strong message to wrong-doers in the game. But the fans have invested their time and love for the team over eight years. We will have to stick behind the players and hope we can see a comeback of fortunes.” Harikumar felt that the committee has done what it set out to do and fans and players’ standpoint is secondary. “The rules have been followed. Two years still seems better than a permanent ban. But in greater scheme, a mindset change is needed from the owners to not let the fans down, rather than change brought about by fear.” Vinod Sundaram, Data Analyst residing in Chennai, felt that fans shouldn’t be made to suffer for the sake of the bigger picture. “Players and fans shouldn’t suffer because of rotten individuals. It is a tough pill to swallow for me. Losing two teams does not clean up the league. There are a whole lot of transparency issues with both IPL and BCCI. Maybe the time has come to professionalise the league’s administration so that fans get what they deserve.” All these fans concluded on a similar somber note: For them IPL will never be the same again without their beloved Chennai Super Kings.