18-year old Kamran Khan will play in IPL this season. Son of a wood cutter, kamran didn't have any first class experience. He slept on railway platforms and had only one pair of white flanels. He was picked because he could bowl fast - upwards of 140 kmph. He is a left arm slinger.
It's a wonderful story. I love IPL because of its nature to level the field for people like kamran. IPL is absolutely competive with very tangible results with timelines attached. Owners / coaches/managers are on the look out for talented players like kamran and grab them when they find them. The other domestic tournaments don't have similar incentives that feirce competition forces so they don't have to pick people like Kamran. They are happy to follow the established order and pick people with the right coaches and connections. It is hard for people like Kamran to break into the system. Here comes the IPL and ergo you see people like Kamran appear from no where.
In the last IPL again people like Ravindra Jadeja appeared from nowhere and he is playing for India now. That's why I think India will have good chances of keep winning at the highest level due to the steady suply of talent facilitated by IPL and the like, after all we have the largest pool of talent and what we need is right mechanism to tap into that.
That's has been the reason behind the success of IITs and the IIMs, again a feircely competetive system fairly administered leveling the field for people hungry for success to emerge from the backwaters.
That's why I welcome any system that breaks the existing order and allows the best to emerge- the beauty contests because they allow models and actresses ( and actors) to emerge from the small towns, comptetive entrance exams and all those reality shows on TV.
Ofcourse the biggest system that needs to be broken is the political system in India. Unless you are born in to a political family or filthy rich , there is virtually no chance to break into the political system. That's why ambitous people like NTR had to start their parties to break the old system. Obama showed how a first time senator with virtually no political backing could break the system to rise to the top. As I blogged earlier, it's virtually not possible for that to happen in India because the system is too closed. People with the right intentions like Jayaprakash Narayan of Lok satta have been finding it difficult to win. The existing parties are not democratic enough for people like JP to emerge within them and hence they have to start their parties and fight the whole system.
In the meanwhile, let's hope the best for Kamran. I will be chearing for him and the Rajastan Royals.
