The beast is back. And so is the buzz.

The buzz around the VIVO Indian Premier League was slightly subdued this year. Thus, when the 12th edition of the T20 jamboree began on an unusually tepid note without the razzmatazz of a star-studded opening ceremony on 23rd March, it seemed to be foreshadowing a season of cricketing action minus the fireworks the league is synonymous with. The first match, billed as the ultimate showdown between India's current captain and his predecessor, also turned out to be a damp squib. 

But that, as we look back at the eventful first week of IPL 12 action, seems to be a distant past. The IPL came back to life, just the way it almost always does. The opening weekend of the 2019 edition of the VIVO Indian Premier League attracted 219 million viewers, which was 31 per cent higher than last year’s opening weekend. Hotstar, the official digital streaming partner of the league, claims to have reached 135 million in the opening three days of the cricketing event which is 2.2 times more than what the first three days of IPL 2018 witnessed. The watch time is also up 2.2 times this IPL from 11th season.

What was the apprehension about IPL 12?

Missing International stars

2019 is the year cricket lovers across the world had been waiting for with bated breath. After all, it's the year of the Cricket World Cup, which begins in May in England. And that's exactly what made some really uneasy with the idea of a season of IPL right before it. Faf Du Plessis, skipper of the South African side and a vital cog in the wheel for the defending champions Chennai Super Kings, expressed his concerns in an interview in January. He said "It’s just before the World Cup and the last thing you want is one of your bowlers getting injured just before the tournament. It’s something that is a concern for us and we need to look at how we can play that scenario out best.”

While players like Australia's Aaron Finch and Glenn Maxwell decided to opt out of the league completely by not putting their names up for auction, players from England have been asked by their board to return home by April 25th. This means that the league will be sans many international stars as it reaches the business end in May.

Concerns about Indian players’ workload

There has also been a concern about the Indian players, who unlike foreign stars have no option of not playing and might find themselves fatigued or, even worse, injured ahead of the World Cup in England after turning up for their respective teams throughout the length of the league.

The General Elections

Speculations were rife that just like 2009 and 2014, the league will be held outside India this year as well, courtesy the general elections. However, BCCI surprised everyone by deciding to not move the IPL to any other country in 2019. That is not to say that the general elections didn't have any bearing on the fate of the league. The league was pushed ahead by a good two weeks from its usual commencement date. The fixtures were also released in parts, and the dates of all matches after the first two weeks are subject to change. What more, the dates of the playoff matches and the finals have still not been announced.

The problems of scheduling aside, one can also expect millions of Indians to be glued to news channels instead of watching the IPL in the election season.

Why is IPL off to a record start?

The idea of pitting Kohli vs Dhoni in the IPL opener at the latter's home ground, which had just seen one IPL game in last three years, worked for the organizers. The stands were full and yellow. The one-sided snoozefest that followed on a sluggish Chepauk track, however, was thoroughly disappointing.

Things, however, picked up pace the next day as David Warner marked his return to IPL post his ball tampering ban in style to strike a stroke-filled 86. SRK's men, riding on Andre Russell's brute power, pulled off a heist when they scored 54 in the last 16 balls of their chase to win their first match against the Sunrisers Hyderabad. It was over to Rishabh Pant in the evening who wowed the Wankhede with an unbeaten 27 ball 78, neutralizing Jasprit Bumrah's threat with some audacious strokeplay and helping Delhi Capitals to a win to give hopes to the fans of the beleaguered franchise.

But the incident that turned everyone's attention to the league came next evening when two teams, captained by Test specialists R Ashwin and Ajinkya Rahane, locked horns. The Indian off-spinner opened a Pandora's box when he decided to knock off Rajasthan's Jos Buttler's bails at the non-striker's end when the latter seemed to be taking his team towards a comfortable victory. Tempers flared and everyone weighed in on Ashwin's actions, which divided the cricketing world into those who thought it was against the spirit of the game and those who backed the bowler showing the law book.

Although a deflated Delhi Capitals were crushed by Dhoni's men next evening, the match wasn't without its moments as Ishant Sharma got into a heated mid-pitch argument with Shane Watson before DC skipper Shreyas Iyer also got embroiled in the same.

The next night, R Ashwin's Kings XI Punjab were back again and so was the limelight. And action followed the Kings again. Andre Russell found himself enjoying a slice of luck when he was bowled by Mohd Shami, only to be saved by a blunder by KXIP who had just three men in the ring instead of the required four. Dre Russ took full advantage of the reprieve and smacked his next 8 balls for 42 runs as Ashwin looked on gobsmacked. Twitter went berserk with Karma memes as Ashwin's side failed to chase KKR's score.

More controversy was to erupt next day when Royal Challengers Bangalore met Mumbai Indians. With RCB needing a six off the last ball to level the scores, Mumbai's Malinga bowled a dot ball and his team won the match by 6 runs. But the replays of the last ball showed that the Sri Lankan had clearly overstepped which umpire S Ravi failed to pick. RCB captain didn't mince any words and blasted the umpiring in the post-match presentation.

But it was all before the match that really turned heads. Only in the first week were we treated to a super over finish when Delhi played Kolkata at their home ground. Delhi Capitals won a match in a super over that they should have won anyway. But KKR showed how strong a contender they are by staging comebacks in the second half of both the matches. The match, in a nutshell, was the drama that everyone associates with the IPL.

When did things threaten to go out of hand?

While the controversies grabbed eyeballs and kept everyone talking about the league, it often didn't make for pretty viewing.

The first ugly sight came in the form of Jasprit Bumrah lying mid-pitch writhing in pain in Mumbai's first match. For a moment, a billion Indians gasped collectively at the prospect of losing India's best bowler to injury right before the World Cup. Although Bumrah recovered to star in Mumbai's next match, the scare brought India face to face with the fear of losing their World Cup probables to injury.

The Mankad episode spilled over too and the Sawai Man Singh crowd booed R Ashwin's men. The MCC too got involved in the matter and after seemingly supporting Ashwin's actions, its manager of the laws Fraser Street said, "Having extensively reviewed the incident again and after further reflection we don’t think it was within the spirit of the game."

Ashwin's cup of woes overflowed and his actions once again came under scanner when in KXIP's match against KKR, he was seen complaining to the authorities about a lapse by umpires. The incident came during Punjab's chase when Andre Russell failed to collect a throw from his teammate due to the lights and the ball rolled over to the boundary. Ashwin claimed that his team deserved 4 overthrows when the umpires, after a discussion with opposition skipper Dinesh Karthik, ruled that the ball had become dead when Russell missed the throw.

The umpiring gaffe in the MI RCB match brought the ultra-competitive side of Virat Kohli to fore, which in the past has often taken the sheen off his batting greatness. According to reports, after expressing his displeasure in the strongest of terms at the post match presentation, the RCB captain barged into the match referee's room hurling expletives and saying he doesn't care if he is penalized for violating the model code of conduct.

So, while the league did defy expectations to start on a record-breaking note, it would have been nice if the reasons for the same were more right than wrong.

Who stole the show in week 1 of IPL 2019?

Controversies aside, the 2019 season has already seen some eye-catching performances, which, sadly weren't often the major talking points.

The old brigade stamped its class on the league in the first week. On a turning track at Chepauk, 38-year-old Harbhajan Singh broke the back of RCB batting lineup in the opening match to return with figures of 3/20. ‘Universe Boss’ Chris Gayle started yet another season of IPL with a match-winning 79, showing the desire to dominate is still pretty much there. Another man whose two innings have gladdened many is Yuvraj Singh. Bought by Mumbai Indians at the auction, the southpaw first scored a half-century against Punjab in a losing cause and then rolled back the years with a hat trick of sixes off RCB's Yuzvendra Chahal. With whispers of this being his last hurrah on the IPL stage, the fans of the man who was crucial to India's 2011 World Cup win would love to see him delight them one last time.

On the other end of the spectrum, Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson have shone brightly, with the latter bringing up the first ton of IPL 2019, albeit in a losing cause against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Having failed to impress selectors with his ODI performances, Rishabh Pant is trying to force his way into the Indian XV for World Cup on the back of his IPL showing. His 78* against Mumbai would go a long way in getting him back on the selector's radar.

After a rare pasting at the hands of Pant, Jasprit Bumrah showed what he's made up of when he brought RCB's chase to a screeching halt with a phenomenal spell at death. Bumrahs's final 3 overs yielded just 8 runs and gave his team three wickets, including that of Kohli.

The standout performer who stands head and shoulders above the rest after IPL’s week one is Andre Russell. His knocks of 49, 48 and 62 might not look big enough but must be enough to instill fear in the hearts of the bowlers. The all-rounder has also delivered with the ball for his franchise and earned Man of the match in both of his team's wins.

How are the teams placed after the first week?

Chennai Super Kings have looked every bit the tight unit that you'd expect them to look under MSD. They secured easy wins in both their encounters and, like all seasons, will be the team to beat. Along with Chennai, Kolkata have looked strong despite their loss to Delhi last night. They managed to win both of their matches riding on Andre Russell's brilliance. But apart from the West Indian, the rest of the foreign imports are yet to shine and KKR’s journey ahead would depend a lot on them, especially Lynn and Narine.

Among the teams that have won only one of their two games, Sunrisers Hyderabad have looked the strongest. Their defeat came more at the hands of Russell than KKR and the ease with which they trounced Rajasthan should sound a warning ball to the rest of the teams. The tapering form of Bhuvaneshwar Kumar might prove to be a headache for the management if the slide isn't arrested soon.

RCB and RR seem to be haunted by familiar demons in this year's edition as well. Kohli's men suffer from over-reliance on him and AB de Villiers while Rajasthan Royals sometimes struggle to force the pace when batting. The bowling department of both teams lack names that inspire confidence and might hamper their chances of reaching the playoffs.