Whether the act of auctioning players is morally right or wrong, thereby reducing them to mere commodities, was the hot topic for discussion for days together in the media, when the IPL auction was going on.

Vijay Mallya, the corporate giant has now given the Indian media something to feast on for days, or even months or years with the brave decision he took recently, that was to oust Venkatesh Prasad (coach) and Charu Sharma (CEO) owing to his team’s below-par performance in the event so far.

The decision has indeed sent shockwaves through the veins of Indian cricket. As for Vijay Mallya, the wily businessman, he has nothing to lose and no one to fear. When he felt that his current employees are not good enough to earn him profits on his huge investment he simply showed them the door.

'Professionalism is something still very much alien to Indian cricket when compared to the Australian set-up'


This serves as a warning not only to the players in Mallya’s Royal Challengers Bangalore team, but also to each and every member in the other teams as they are also owned by brave and dynamic corporate giants like him.

Professionalism is something still very much alien to Indian cricket when compared to the Australian set-up. Here, always names and decade-old records support a person’s existence, and not current performance or recent form.

The professional approach of players to the game, and the selectors towards their duty, was and still is one of the root causes of the success of Australian cricket. That is the Aussie way of approaching the game - Perform or Perish.

This was a syrup which the former coach of  Team India, Greg Chapell, tried to give Indian cricket, a taste they not only disliked but spat it right back in his face and kicked him out. With the BCCI  pampering them like an ever-loving mother, the players continued to rest on their past laurels.

But the corporate giants in the IPL are the harsh step-mothers who have no sympathies and sentiments. With money being the prime motive, they need not echo the sentiments of BCCI, when it comes to ousting a player. Corporate cricket does not need such shattered men, for heaven sake. They are on hunt for fighters, not fragile characters.

“Play hard or go home" - this was one of the taglines of an Indian ad featuring Mahendra Dhoni. The new ODI captain of India was in fact sending a strong message to the veterans in the team supporting his decision to focus on youth which forged him victory against the Aussies in the Commonwealth Bank Tri-series, this year.

The corporate owners of the teams in IPL also have no different message to convey. But isn’t this too hard on the players ? Aren’t they human beings ? Arguments in support of the players can arise from all corners, as this is something new for the Rest of Australia in the cricket world.

But think from the angle of the corporate owners and you will get the answer. They have invested heavily in the IPL venture aiming at profits and not to improve player morale or prevent their confidence from being shattered and public image from being marred. When they have invested so much all they want is good results and nothing else.

Brave Mallya’s decision is definitely a red alert signal for the Royal Challengers captain Rahul Dravid who is earning crore with his icon status from the event. But he has never been able to justify his rewards with his performance so far as he has hardly scored a little above 100 from seven innings so far.

In fact Mallya has reportedly given a warning to Dravid and his boys, a warning on the issue by expressing his displeasure on the team’s performance at a party on May 5. If not taken seriously The Big Wall along with a bunch of followers might be forced to watch the rest of the team’s performance sitting at home.

So Rahul, better watch out and also all the other careless icons. No more spoon-feeding or pampering hereafter. Your days of complacency are numbered.

King Khan, who owns the Kolkata team, fired the first salvo at the beginning of the tournament that he will withdraw sponsorship if the venture is not profitable. Mallya’s decision to oust the current coach and CEO was just a step taken by him to spur the others to perform well and earn better results for himself.

But in the wider perspective it is indeed a giant leap for Indian cricket towards professionalism, like Armstrong setting his foot on the moon was termed "a giant leapfor mankind." This is corporate cricket at its best!