New Delhi: Harbhajan Singh, Akash Chopra and Navjot Singh Sidhu came under fire on social media for their comments. [Hindi] In progress Indian Premier League (IPL). This isn’t the first time fans have advocated for a better product from the broadcaster. Former West Indies player Ian Bishop sits at the other end of this divide.Addressing a larger point, former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) team director and sports administrator Joy Bhattacharjee wrote on X, “I’m all for Ian Bishop for the research he puts into junior cricketers.”
“Demanding why other commentators are not picking up stories like this. I am asking you as cricket lovers to go and read and celebrate the reporters who make Bishop and other commentators look good on air with great reporting from the ground. “You don’t begrudge Bush the credit you give him, I’m sure he would welcome him as a great commentator and, more importantly, as a very decent man,” he continued.Bishop, who was recommended by Michael Holding as a commentator on Channel 4, does not shy away from acknowledging that much of the credit goes to the journalists on the ground who chase the stories.“As a broadcaster and as a human being… I am interested in numbers, but the numbers are widely available. What I am interested in is the person behind the cricketer. So if I come to a tournament like this, I want to research every player who is in the league,” he told TimesofIndia.com on the sidelines of ILT20.“I want to know who their parents are, I want to know what job they had, I want to know how they got into the game. I believe the public deserves to know that for a number of reasons. A 13-year-old viewer who doesn’t have access to funds, I want to be able to say to him or her, you can do it too, even if you don’t have access to the resources.”Bishop revealed that he picked up gig chops from Holding, Gary Francis at Channel 4 and Michael O’Dwyer at Transworld International, while Tony Cozier is his role model.
I want to thank all of you in the media, especially the written press, who do all these profiles on players that give me information as a commentator that I wouldn’t have known otherwise.
Ian Bishop
The 58-year-old played 43 Tests for the West Indies in a nine-year career. Since being sidelined from the cricket pitch due to injury in 1999, he has preferred to take the microphone rather than coach. If not, he would have become a teacher.“I want to be able to explain what this player has done. So it takes me a lot of time. In fact, I was asking my analyst if there was an AI that could help me reduce my research time. Because I spend a lot of time preparing for the game, much to the chagrin of my wife and kids,” said Bishop on the website.“But I don’t want to do any harm to a player who doesn’t know or who I’m talking about, watching and listening,” he continued.
As far as delivery is concerned, the pace of Test match cricket is slow. You have time to tell a story. While at the other extreme, T20 cricket has to provide that energy most of the time.
Ian Bishop
He then thanked the media for helping him do his job better, as Bhattacharjee said in his post.“I want to say thank you to all of you in the media, especially the written press, who do all these profiles on players that provide me as a commentator with information that I wouldn’t have known otherwise.”Another aspect of the interpretive role goes beyond research and comes in the form of transmission. Martin Tyler’s “Aguero” in the 2012 English Premier League saw Manchester City win the title with seconds remaining. It’s also “Done in style!” Ravi Shastri led India to the 2011 ODI World Cup.Bishop believes that delivery depends on the format, and sometimes silence works well.“As far as delivery is concerned, Test match cricket is a slower pace; you have time to tell a story. Whereas T20 cricket on the other hand has to deliver that energy most of the time. And so if I have to do it, I want to bring that energy because of the format of the game.“There are times when I prefer not to talk, to be honest with you. And then the producer is in your ear, ‘Are you not saying anything? You’re not working today?’ he said.Do they, or other observers, prepare such lines or rehearse these moments?“If I know a guy’s back story, I’m ready with him before the game. And if I know the game is coming at a critical moment… Ajesh Ramachandran, who works at the ICC. [an executive producer]… In 2016, he was the first person to say, please prepare for moments, whether it’s a half-century, whether it’s a five-wicket haul, with something. Because that moment will live forever. And I try to do that.
Poll
How do you feel about the research material provided by the commentators?
“But I also find that the best commentary has kind of an idea of the moment, but more advertising through bullet points. Because if you write a script, it reads very well. Whereas reacting to the moment with a little bit of prior information, I think, is the best way to go.”At this juncture in the IPL commentary divide, he also shed light on gaining perspective on criticism, which can resonate with the current crop of under-fire IPL commentators, from legendary commentator Richie Benaud.“When there was a vote for best commentator, and he won, he said, ‘Don’t worry about it. I didn’t get all the votes. This person, that person got some votes, so not everyone liked my style. [there’s a] “There’s a segment of the market that likes volume, they like words, they like to call loudly to excite them, and there’s another segment of the market that likes quiet,” he told The Cricket Monthly magazine.
