The Indian Premier League that just entered its ninth edition has seen ups and down like no other domestic tournament anywhere in the world in the sport of cricket.
It has been marred by controversy almost every year yet the entertainment value provided by the matches in the around two months every year has seen the franchise stay in place over the years.
However, with two top class clubs suspended and many more monetary allegations, the IPL seems to be fast losing its viewership at least in India.
A recent report suggested that the first week of the current season of the IPL more viewership that any other previous editions but as the tournament has gone on, it seems that the tide is turning away from the tournament.
The latest report on the Television ratings of the competition revealed an astonishing drop in the viewership from the same time last year confirming that the various controversies surrounding the tournament have reduced its popularity.
The latest report from the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) showed a significant dip in the viewership of the matches as the days passed by.
This report indicated that the IPL, broadcast by the Sony network, had an average TVR (Television Viewership Rating) of 3.50 for the first six games of the tournament.
Television Viewership Rating is a time-weighted figure factoring in the number of viewers and how much time they spent watching a particular channel and it is understood that the IPL has seen a drastic reduction in these numbers.
Game one of the tournament, between defending champions Mumbai Indians and debutant franchise Rising Pune Supergiants, attracted an audience of 3.24.
The next match, between Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils, dipped to 2.55. The numbers for the following five matches were 2.98, 3.50, 3.66, 2.86 and 2.23 respectively.
Here is a chart showing the average viewership of the competition since its first season:
The BARC took over TAM as a regulatory body of the TRP’s and it is said that comparing BARC’s numbers with TAM’s numbers from the previous season especially as BARC uses a different sample size, methodology and formula may not provide the exact picture.
Data generated by BARC is a sample spread across rural and urban parts of India, unlike how TAM operated and it is believed that comparing the current year numbers from the previous year might be unfair.
But the fact that the viewership of the competition is only reducing by the year, it might be time for the IPL officials to look at certain other ways to introduce more entertainment in the tournament.
Otherwise, there is a great chance that the IPL franchise might not be there to entertain everyone in around a couple of year’s time.
What do you think IPL should change to get its popularity back?