'The impact player rule has skewed the game heavily in favour of the batters.'
'The second factor is that all venues have BCCI-appointed curators as opposed to local curators.'
'This has essentially taken the home advantage out of the equation.'
Cricket's four horsemen of the apocalypse drove the West Indies to world dominance through a trail of bruises, racist backlash and colonial stereotypes.
But the room for similar bowling attacks to decide an Indian Premier League match appears to be shrinking.
A Business Standard analysis of data from ESPNcricinfo.com shows that the dominance of batsmen is increasing with each season of the T20 tournament, with their scores getting bigger every year (chart 1).
Top batters have scored more than 50 runs on average in each innings in past seasons.
It has crossed over 100 so far in 2024. Even the median ones are netting more runs than before (chart 2).
Rajat Bhatia, a former player for Delhi and the Kolkata Knight Riders, attributed the frenetic pace to a combination of factors including the way the Board of Control for Cricket in India prepares grounds and substitutes available through the impact player rule.
"The impact player rule has skewed the game heavily in favour of the batters. Franchises are now coming into a game with the cushion of an extra batter, who is generally a big hitter.
"This means that no score is safe in this IPL. The second factor is that all venues have BCCI-appointed curators as opposed to local curators.
"This has essentially taken the inherent home advantage out of the equation. Wickets are much truer, and the ball is coming on to the bat a lot easier, which is why you're seeing such sensational stroke play," explained Bhatia
"The weather has also played a part in the pitches being more batting friendly," said Bhatia.
Dilip Vengsarkar, former India player and chief selector, said bowlers must introduce more variations. "Shorter boundaries and powerful bats are reasons for such high scores," he said
The median bowler is hit for more runs than before, and the gap with top bowlers is widening (chart 3).
The West Indies bowling attack helped inspire a generation of new bowlers. IPL's impact on future bowlers remains to be seen.
Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
