Page 47 - IPL 2

The first thing that became history though was sleep. Everything was happening at a breakneck speed. Blackberrys
In 23 days we had to move thousands of people into South Africa - move itineraries, move hotels, move logistics,
move flights, coordinate practice sessions, movement of teams within the country, fans, ticket sales, marketing
campaigns, food and other logistics. It was just a mammoth undertaking. It’s bigger than the logistics of an Olympics
for example, in other words the Olympics happen in one city, we had 8 cities. People underestimate what a huge
element the TV production is - there are about 34 cameras a game. Then at the back end of it, you’ve got control rooms
to set up and then you have to pull the signal up. We have to co-ordinate all that and its just a huge undertaking
LALIT MODI
There are 50-60 people per unit, 8 venues would require 3 to 4 units, so you are talking about 200 people who move
around from venue to venue. The weight of equipment is about 18 tons, that and the 8km of cables which are laid
at every venue before the match, meant we would have to import 80 tons of equipment into South Africa, not to
mention coordinating the travel and stay logistics of the entire crew
JAMES REGO, Director of Production
That set the ball rolling for the hectic 23 days ahead: Venues to be finalized, clearances of every kind, ticketing, and most
importantly, a marketing campaign that would create enough awareness to fill up the stadiums. There were meetings,
recces, and more meetings. Sleepless nights and plenty of air miles.
We had a big marketing task outside the operational task, imagine the English Premier League coming to play
football in India and played in different venues, by the time we understand the different clubs the tournament
would be over, I think that put a serious onus on us in our ability to market and build awareness to the game. And
this could not have happened without our creative partners Ogilvy and Mindshare
SUNDAR RAMAN, CEO, IPL.
Etienne De Villiers called on our old friend Francois Pienaar, former SA rugby captain and South African legend and
asked him to be a part of our team. Etienne, was former Chairman of Walt Disney Company but a South African and
at that present time the Chairman of BBC. I asked Etienne to move to South Africa with me and help me with the
campaign, to open doors and also to identify how to connect with the South African people. Their insights were
extremely valuable to us and we were able to go down and city by city meet with all the key people and I remember
one day just before the carnival we did 8 cities in a day. Everyone was very excited about what we were trying to do
and how it would help the South African economy. They got behind us and the rest was history.
LALIT MODI
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became the life and blood of the team. In cars, in planes and in choppers. Creative’s were being approved, commercials
were being proofed, and designs were being tweaked on the fly.
To get the South African public to adopt a team, I recommended that we encourage all the radio stations and their
respective disc jockeys to adopt a team. It was vital that they understood the importance of South Africa hosting a
successful tournament; this would have a meaningful impact in particular on cross border relationships between
South Africa and India. We did a whirlwind trip trough South Africa to present the IPL and our campaign as well
as the importance of a successful tournament to all the radio stations. The support was tremendous and we got
unequivocal buy-in from every DJ and radio station, they became Brand Ambassadors. This insight helped us to
get all the radio listeners and loyal fans of the station to follow suit. When my sons called me and Jean stated
that he is now a Delhi Daredevil and Stephan triumphantly proclaimed to be a Rajasthan Royal, I knew we were
onto a winner.
FRANCOIS PINEEAR
The campaign was working like a charm. Wherever you went in South Africa you’d see or hear it. There were
hoardings everywhere. Newspapers, television, radio. There was a palpable buzz in the air. The locals knew there
was something big happening, even if they couldn’t entirely comprehend the magnitude of it. But by the time the
final ball had been bowled, not only had the South Africans comprehended, they had also accepted and embraced.
They embraced the IPL, they embraced the teams and its players. They embraced Indian food and culture. They
embraced India. “We were totally alien to the country. We did not know the infrastructure or the people. We
did not know the local governments or the police. Cricket South Africa held our hands. The things that we were
doing and wanting to execute had never been done before even by Cricket South Africa, but they were unfazed and
unwavering in their support.
LALIT MODI
Calling them co-operative is actually doing an injustice to what they did. They were far more supportive and
welcoming than the word suggests.
SUNDAR RAMAN
When the first ball was bowled to a capacity Newlands crowd on the 18th of April, an exhausted sleep deprived IPL team
couldn’t help but feel their hearts swell. They had been thrown a curve ball, and had hit it out of the park. Magnificently.
They had taken on the seemingly impossible and made it possible. This was not just a cricket tournament; it had gone
way beyond just that. India had come to South Africa, and had been treated like family. In the following five weeks the
DLF IPL would dazzle, it would enthrall, it would captivate. And most importantly, when it packed its bags and headed
back home, it would leave the glow behind.
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