IPL without cheerleaders ? Possible ?

The 7th edition of the IPL will be less glamorous courtesy of removing the concept of cheerleaders from the sport. The decision came in the wake of the 6th edition of the tournament which was rocked by the spot fixing scandal. IPL, the tournament which has transformed cricket into a sport of money and style has changed the way people perceive cricket – from a competitive sport to a sort of an entertainment. The cheerleaders had been criticized in earlier versions also as they portrayed women as objects of visual entertainment.

Will the absence of cheerleaders affect IPL? Will it lead to a flop show? The answer is NO. People must remember what IPL is in the 1st place – its cricket. It is not showbiz or about money. It is about two teams battling it out in a 20 over format. The entertainment factor will always be there thanks to the high scoring nature of the game and the power-play rules employed. Cheerleaders or not, the IPL brings in wonderful advantages like – a platform for identifying young talent in the country, fostering friendship between players of different nations, a second chance for some players, a testing platform for various captains and of course, unlimited fun.

The removal of cheerleaders is also a welcome step towards treating women better. The cheerleaders have been portrayed as items for appeal to the crowd which is downright disgraceful in my opinion. Consider this, they show skin and dance just to visually appease the millions of people watching. In a country where the number of attacks against women is increasing, such depictions should be strictly prohibited. To sum it up, I believe the removal of cheerleaders won’t affect the sport. The TRP ratings might come down initially, but once people realize that it is the sport in which they fell in love and not the “visual” entertainment, IPL will be back to its glorious self.