Take a load of this one. It seems that Sundar Raman, one of the big guns of this cricket jamboree called IPL, got into a scrap with one of the Delhi officials.

By Pallav Joshi

The story, as it is being told, goes thus. The official was held up by Delhi Police cops at the ground when the Delhi side were playing their first game. While it may not sound like a big deal, you don't know what you are in for till the time you are held up by Delhi Police, the paragon of illogic and cussedness.

Anyway, our big man was incensed, naturally, since he is the second biggest in the circus ladder. When he got inside, he hauled up the officials from the company sponsoring the Delhi franchise, including Sunil Valson, a left-arm medium-pacer who served the Delhi Ranji Trophy side with distinction and was even a part of the 1983 World Cup winning squad.

It seems that Raman, in a combination of a bloated ego and fanned ire, threatened all kinds of things, including getting the Delhi team scratched to cancelling the accreditation of the concerned officials. In response, it is understood that Valson and other officials told him to do his worst. Unconfirmed reports say that there was also some pushing and shoving involved.

As it culminated, the head honchos of the sponsoring firm got involved and while they refused to take any action against Valson, he was essentially banned from entering the stadium.

So as we see, cricket comes in a distant second to circus, where the boys who can spin the coin have supreme control and with supreme control, come supreme egos, so much so that people can act like a spoilt brat denied of his lollipop.

While this cricket tournament has logistically and financially created a watermark that won't ever be matched in Indian sports, some of the other values, which people still try to inculcate in their children, have been run over by sheer momentum and weight of the greenbacks.

Case in hand. This was nothing more than an official glitch. We are sure that the gentleman in question is used to being mollycoddled so being held up by the cops must have been traumatic. But his claims that he would get the Delhi side, which includes the likes of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir scratched, is just the fallout of loss of focus.

But arrogance seems to go with this event. The big guns have taken of all and sundry including the Government of India. Mumbai saw Sharad Pawar, the big chief of BCCI, not attending the opening ceremony and first game, but it did not really worry the bosses here. Money talks, they had realised ages ago, and all are ready to toe the line.

Also, many officials who have jumped on to the bandwagon, are in for only that reason. The moment there is a crisis, these gentlemen, otherwise seen flaunting their affiliation on their shirt fronts, vanish conveniently, only to re-emerge when the storm has passed.

This is the age of instant cricket. Such tricks are very much part of the whole circus.