If Pune can have its own IPL team, it is difficult to fathom as to why the state of Gujarat doesn't have its own IPL team.
After all, there are so many players in the Indian national side who hail from Gujarat - there is Munaf Patel from the village of Ikhar in Bharuch district and of course there are the famed Pathan brothers - Irfan and Yusuf, from Baroda.
Moreover, what is intriguing is the fact that Gujarat has so many industrialists and enough business houses and High Net Worth Individuals (HNIs) who can easily afford to own an IPL team. Names that particularly come to mind include the Adani Group, founded by Gautam Adani as well as the Nirma Group, founded by Dr. Karsanbhai Patel.
They are both very well capable of owning IPL teams of their own, as are probably hundreds and thousands of other business houses across the state.
As far as infrastructure is concerned, that too is not a problem in Gujarat. On the contrary, on many fronts, Gujarat perhaps has one of the best infrastructure setups in the country. In case you have any doubts about this claim, one look at cities like Gandhinagar should easily put them to rest.
Connectivity with other parts of the country is also not an issue. Ahmedabad, Baroda, Rajkot, Surat...they are all very well connected by air with other parts of the country, including direct flights.
And with regard to cricketing infrastructure, again it is quite a surprise that there is no IPL team from Gujarat, when the state is otherwise a very popular venue for test matches as well as One Day Internationals. Among the latter, a big match which was played fairly recently in the state was the India-Australia Quarter Final of the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup, at the Sardar Patel Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Taking all of these factors into consideration, it seems rather surprising that there is no team in the IPL from Gujarat.
Agreed that there were the Ahmedabad Rockets in the Indian Cricket League (ICL) but now that ICL is defunct and history, all that matters is the IPL and therefore a team from Gujarat should certainly be there in it.
How about the 'Amdavadi Dhoklas'? Or the 'Surat Diamonds'?
Certainly such a team is on the anvil, as far as the state of Gujarat is concerned.
But are any of the business houses in the state (or any other prospective team owners) listening?
Most importantly, is Mr. Narendra Modi listening? Or do you think he couldn't care less?
If we go by the ownership trend for existing IPL teams, we find that they need not even belong to that place, in order to own an IPL team from a particular place. That being the case, does no one out there see merit in the fact that there should definitely be an IPL team from Gujarat?
After all, there are so many players in the Indian national side who hail from Gujarat - there is Munaf Patel from the village of Ikhar in Bharuch district and of course there are the famed Pathan brothers - Irfan and Yusuf, from Baroda.
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| Munaf Patel comes from the nondescript village of Ikhar, in Bharuch District of Gujarat |
Moreover, what is intriguing is the fact that Gujarat has so many industrialists and enough business houses and High Net Worth Individuals (HNIs) who can easily afford to own an IPL team. Names that particularly come to mind include the Adani Group, founded by Gautam Adani as well as the Nirma Group, founded by Dr. Karsanbhai Patel.
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| Gautam Adani, Founder of Adani Group. He can certainly afford to own an IPL Team from Gujarat, can't he? |
They are both very well capable of owning IPL teams of their own, as are probably hundreds and thousands of other business houses across the state.
As far as infrastructure is concerned, that too is not a problem in Gujarat. On the contrary, on many fronts, Gujarat perhaps has one of the best infrastructure setups in the country. In case you have any doubts about this claim, one look at cities like Gandhinagar should easily put them to rest.
 |
| Superb Infrastructure and Town Planning as seen in Gandhinagar, Gujarat |
Connectivity with other parts of the country is also not an issue. Ahmedabad, Baroda, Rajkot, Surat...they are all very well connected by air with other parts of the country, including direct flights.
 |
| Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad - Connecting all major domestic and international destinations |
And with regard to cricketing infrastructure, again it is quite a surprise that there is no IPL team from Gujarat, when the state is otherwise a very popular venue for test matches as well as One Day Internationals. Among the latter, a big match which was played fairly recently in the state was the India-Australia Quarter Final of the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup, at the Sardar Patel Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad.
 |
| Sardar Patel Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad |
Taking all of these factors into consideration, it seems rather surprising that there is no team in the IPL from Gujarat.
Agreed that there were the Ahmedabad Rockets in the Indian Cricket League (ICL) but now that ICL is defunct and history, all that matters is the IPL and therefore a team from Gujarat should certainly be there in it.
How about the 'Amdavadi Dhoklas'? Or the 'Surat Diamonds'?
Certainly such a team is on the anvil, as far as the state of Gujarat is concerned.
But are any of the business houses in the state (or any other prospective team owners) listening?
Most importantly, is Mr. Narendra Modi listening? Or do you think he couldn't care less?
 |
| Mr. Narendra Modi - Are you Listening? |
If we go by the ownership trend for existing IPL teams, we find that they need not even belong to that place, in order to own an IPL team from a particular place. That being the case, does no one out there see merit in the fact that there should definitely be an IPL team from Gujarat?
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