The Indian Premier League is nearing its second edition but has not been able to shed itself of all the drama and anxiety.

By Rajarshi Gupta

The IPL, no doubt, captured the imagination of a nation that was thriving on the World Twenty20 Championship and the sudden boom of the newest format of the game.

The matches in the IPL last year, the glamour, the cheer girls and the intensity of some of the biggest cricketing stars left audiences begging for more.

And more they got. India saw with abated breath when S. Sreesanth, turning out for King's XI Punjab could not control his tears after a right arm slap from India teammate and Mumbai Indians (stand-in) skipper Harbhajan Singh.

What followed was more intriguing. Harbhajan, who barely a month back was a hero of a new India Down Under, was banned from playing the remainder of the IPL and snatched of all his match fees.

Sreesanth was let off with a warning. India was watching and so was the world. The IPL had become big.

A year down the line, when the expectations were reaching a fever pitch, came a dampener. The Union Home Ministry was not comfortable with the scheduling of the T20 tournament. Big names and big money in the event meant bigger security concerns.

After what happened in Mumbai in November and in Lahore, the Indian authorities were not taking any risks and asked IPL chairman Lalit Modi to change the dates.

Several states had initially said they would not be to provide any extra security forces for the IPL matches as they would have coincided with the General Elections.

The revision of the IPL schedule has snowballed into a mini national crisis. A lot is riding at stake. Sponsors, new recruits and an inquisitive media.

The IPL fever has touched the right nerves. There would be some new venues this year and the big city zip night well be missing. But make no mistake, the odds are heavily in favour of another successful venture. The drama is what it needs.