(Cricinfo) If India hadn’t done well in the World Cup, would it have led to viewer fatigue ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL)? And since they won, will it translate to an enthusiastic fan base, and even creation of new fans for the game? This year’s IPL will answer those questions. There is another question that has been hovering around since the creation of IPL. Have the teams succeeded in creating loyal fan bases? This is the fourth edition and one should ideally see the early signs of loyalty but many teams, barring Chennai Super Kings, have changed their personnel so much that it will be interesting to see how the fans respond. Are the fans’ parochial affection to the region/city bigger than their love for the players?
For what it’s worth, this year’s IPL starts off with a lovely battle within a battle, an ad writer’s dream. MS Dhoni, the man who led India to the World cup win,
