A CRICKET REALITY SHOW
Much of my childhood was shaped by what I watched on DD and one of my best memories of DD remains watching this reality show called Cricket Star that aired from Dec 2006 to Mar 2007. By that point, reality shows were ruling the roost on TV but a reality+
Much of my childhood was shaped by what I watched on DD and one of my best memories of DD remains watching this reality show called Cricket Star that aired from Dec 2006 to Mar 2007. By that point, reality shows were ruling the roost on TV but a reality+
show on cricket was quite unheard of for the 13-year-old cricket obsessed me and to watch it on DD which by then had become a dumping ground of poor and retro content was amazing. The show was produced by Emerging Media and it was later we came to know that it was broadcasted+
simultaneously on Zee and DD and was the first major reality show to simulcast on Zee and DD.
The format of the show was the same that was used by all reality shows back then. 25,000 participants gave a trial and a few talented individuals got the chance to be a part of Cricket+
The format of the show was the same that was used by all reality shows back then. 25,000 participants gave a trial and a few talented individuals got the chance to be a part of Cricket+
Star academy for 10 weeks. The show documented their journeys in this period of time.
Now coming to the cricket and cricketers part, the director of the Cricket Star academy was Robin Singh and the Chief Selector was Kapil Dev. The ultimate prize that the youngsters were vying+
Now coming to the cricket and cricketers part, the director of the Cricket Star academy was Robin Singh and the Chief Selector was Kapil Dev. The ultimate prize that the youngsters were vying+
for was a contract with the English cricket club Leicestershire.
Every week, a former cricketer would pay a visit to talk to the starry eyed youngsters - Mahela Jayawardene and Monty Panesar are some of the names I remember who visited the academy. The players would then go on+
Every week, a former cricketer would pay a visit to talk to the starry eyed youngsters - Mahela Jayawardene and Monty Panesar are some of the names I remember who visited the academy. The players would then go on+
play a T20 match at the end of every week on the basis of which their performance was evaluated by Robin Singh, who I remember from the show as one strict disciplinarian who rarely smiled. The show thankfully wasn't a sob affair and while some aspiring cricketers did come from+
humble backgrounds, that never became the major focus of the show. The focus always remained cricket and how these youngsters coped or failed to cope with the level of cricket that the show exposed them to. That's what majorly made up the Saturday episode while in the Sunday +
episode, we watched the HLs of the match played between the participants. They even played a T20 against a Leicestershire team as part of the show. Every week, one of them was eliminated. Sadly, the reality show component that the show could have done without but it didn't+
was the public voting system. Two cricketers who seemed head and shoulders above the rest were Dinesh Salunkhe and Mohd. Abbas. Salunkhe was a leg-spinner who could hit lusty blows while Abbas was a very elegant left-hander. In the final, Salunkhe and Abbas were competing +
against Sukhvir Singh, a medium pacer. In a decision that possibly surprised many (at least it surprised me at that time), Sukhvir ended up winning the show and getting a contract with Leicestershire. Salunkhe, on the other hand, became the 'Man of the Series', in all likelihood+
a testament to the fact that he was the choice of the selectors. Singh, son of a bus driver who had given up college to be a part of the show, didn't play a FC match for the team and played only a handful of matches with their second XI in 2007. Salunkhe got a scholarship to
train with Leicestershire during the 2007 season and played a few games for the county's second XI.
I feel the fact that Salunkhe was the choice of the selectors was confirmed when he got a contract with Rajasthan Royals in the inaugural edition of the IPL. Manoj Badale, who+
I feel the fact that Salunkhe was the choice of the selectors was confirmed when he got a contract with Rajasthan Royals in the inaugural edition of the IPL. Manoj Badale, who+
was the owner of the Royals was also the Chairman of the company behind the show. Salunkhe played 6 matches and batted for the Royals in the lower order. He was part of the setup in 2013 too but never played.He now runs an academy in Chembur. Nothing was heard of Abbas sadly +
after the show.
As for the show, which was conceptualised by @theanalyst apparently, the makers wanted to create similar talent hunt shows in Pak and UK too. Not just that, there were plans to develop a show called 'Soccer Star' in partnership with Liverpool and AIFF. However,+
As for the show, which was conceptualised by @theanalyst apparently, the makers wanted to create similar talent hunt shows in Pak and UK too. Not just that, there were plans to develop a show called 'Soccer Star' in partnership with Liverpool and AIFF. However,+
none of it materialised and even Cricket Star never returned to the television screen for its second season. Later, Rajasthan Royals, in association with Dainik Bhaskar, made it a local tournament to scout talent for their IPL side.
Do you remember anything about Cricket Star?
Do you remember anything about Cricket Star?
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