IPL cricket is a fine example of free-market capitalism
₹24.5 crore, the highest paid for any cricketer. Was this shocking? Yes. Was there something amiss? No.
That’s because it is the market that decided the price of the player. This is what happens in any market where forces of demand and supply meet. Ten team owners were part of an open and transparent auction that involved a price-discovery process.
Welcome to IPL, which epitomizes Adam Smith’s theory of free-market capitalism. The set-up is analogous to how the corporate sector operates. Just like we have shareholders who repose faith in a company, so it is with the people who form audiences in stadiums or watch matches on TV screens and hand-held devices.
They do not own teams, but their presence is essential for these tournaments to take place, as this ecosystem exists for them. Sponsors are willing to sponsor as they have a committed home audience. Audiences get what they want, and as long as they are willing to pay for match tickets (which can go up to ₹20,000 a seat), there can be no counter-argument.
Players are like employees in the capitalist world. All of us get entertainment on a daily basis as we go home and watch IPL matches after office hours. These players play continuously for almost two months and burn out easily, just as employees do at work.
Their burn-out is through injury more often than not. But all are paid very well, which is what motivates them to play. The same happens in the corporate world, where employees are made to work endlessly and compensated with bonuses and stock options.
There is a lot of travel involved for executives across cities and countries, where they reside in the best hotels. The same holds for cricketers, who need to travel every second day from one city to another. This is
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