It’s showtime again as innovations embellish the world’s most popular cricketing extravaganza 

The 16th chapter of the IPL is all set to open in Ahmedabad on Friday. With innovations and new rules, there’s more excitement and buzz.

Things come thick and fast in Indian sport these days. In the 89 days since the turn of the year, the nation has played host to a stunning array of top-draw sporting events.

There were 15 limited-overs cricket matches against Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Australia, the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Women’s Premier League, Tata Open Maharashtra ATP 250, Hockey World Cup, Boxing World Championships, India Open badminton and Indian Open golf to name a few.

Gone are the days when sport was a pastime, a touristy affair to be enjoyed seasonally. It is now a 24/7/365 enterprise, with an ever-growing list of competitions waiting to be shoehorned into the calendar.

Yet, since 2008, about two months of the Indian summer — but for the General Election years of 2009 and 2014, and the Covid pandemic years of 2020 and 2021 — have been exclusively reserved for the Indian Premier League, arguably the world’s most popular cricketing extravaganza.

Families and friends either throng stadiums or embellish their living rooms with large TV screens, as the world’s best cricketers reveal their secret graces, for there is nothing finer in life than its physical enjoyment.

From Friday, it will be that time of the year again as IPL 2023 gets underway at the Narendra Modi Stadium here with the match between Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings.

After three years spent under the shadow of the pandemic, it will be a rebirth of sorts with the return of the home-and-away format, allowing players to bounce off the audience’s energy like showmen would in a theatre.