Indian Premier League (IPL) Is Now 15 Years Old: Reliving First Ever IPL Century By Brendon McCullum. It was the 18th of April 2008, phones were still on 2G, Virat Kohli had just won the U19 International Cup, and international cricket was still just games between different nations.
India has captured the interest of the entire globe by creating the Indian Premier League that brings cricket together with Bollywood stars, industrialists, and politicians, as well as megabuck player auctions and extravagant opening ceremonies.
The IPL caught every Indian cricket fan off guard and was the idea of Lalit Modi, the BCCI vice-president at the time. Who could have predicted that the 2008 tournament would gain popularity all over the world and develop into one of the richest franchise leagues in the world?
BCCI introduced the Indian Premier League competition on September 13 as a franchise-based Twenty20 cricket competition following India’s triumph in the 2007 T20 World Cup. Lalit Modi, a vice-president of the BCCI, spearheaded the IPL concept and outlined the competition’s features, including its format, prize money, franchise revenue plan, and squad formation requirements.
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The BCCI established the foundation for the IPL on April 18, 2008, after weeks of planning, and 16 years later, it is one of the best cricket competitions in the world. The IPL 2008 officially began as two Indian giants, Sourav Ganguly, and Rahul Dravid, led their respective teams, Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore, in the league’s inaugural match after an electrifying opening ceremony in New Delhi.
A young New Zealander named Brendon McCullum ignited the world of cricket on the opening day of the tournament by scoring 158 runs in the league’s first-ever innings.
Brandon McCullum’s Inning in First Ever IPL Match
Brendon McCullum of KKR scored a century in the first innings of the tournament’s opening match, making it one of the most exciting contests in competition history. This helped his team to an easy victory.
As the T20 carnival got off, McCullum immediately established himself as the leader with one of his best centuries ever, while the buzz centered on the growth of the league and the possible future of cricket.
Cricket excitement erupted at Bengaluru’s Chinnaswamy Stadium as supporters saw McCullum put on a previously unheard-of display. The New Zealander, who was opening the batting alongside Ganguly, got the innings off to an easy start in the first over.
But what followed was an incredible display of batting skills that set the stage for an astounding 222-run first-inning total. McCullum scored 158 runs off just 73 balls on his own. There were a total of 13 maximums and 10 fours in the knock.
For the Indian Premier League website, Brendon McCullum got down with David Hussey and shared his memories of the match. All of it, the right-handed player said, was a bit of a blur, but he also disclosed that none of the players knew at the time just how huge the IPL would grow.
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McCullum revealed when asked how he was feeling in the crease that he was really ashamed in his first few balls since he failed to score even one run off them. McCullum entered the room with a reputation as a swashbuckler, but he struggled to get going.
Interesting Facts about IPL
The IPL is now second only to the National Football League (NFL) of the United States in terms of value per game. NBA, MLB, and other major leagues have already been exceeded by IPL.
The IPL became the most lucrative cricket competition in the world when the media rights for the 2023–27 cycle were sold in 2022 for a record–setting INR 48,390.32 crores deal.
The 16th season of the IPL is the first in which two distinct platforms have been granted satellite and streaming rights.
Lalit Modi initially proposed the IPL in 1995 as an ODI league, but BCCI rejected the idea. Modi once more proposed it as a T20 league in 2007, and the rest is history.
