General Elections in India forced the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) seventh season to look for an alternate home for its initial phase, and IPL 7 nailed its tent in the UAE for the first 20 matches, which concluded on Wednesday. And though the charm for the controversial league has diminished overall at the start of this edition, fans stay hooked online to support their teams.
While it’s still early days to ascertain if the ongoing Elections have impacted interest in the IPL, here’s a look at some of the interesting data:
Less interest so far compared to IPL 6
Comparing the search interest for IPL 6 with the latest edition, Google search trends reflect loss of interest among the digital audience. Going by the search patterns, IPL 7 doesn’t seems to have taken off well compared to IPL 6, which saw search graphs ticking the peak in initial days of the start of the event.
Most interested Indian states
In this cricket crazy nation, regional interest for Indian Premier League (IPL) also witnessed significant movement with West Bengal taking the top spot as the state searching the most for Indian Premier League. Karnataka, from where the most number of searches emerged during the last season, was found trailing on the fifth spot.
IPL 7 (in chronological order): West Bengal, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Pondicherry, Goa, Assam, Andhra, Gujarat
IPL 6 (in chronological order): Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Orissa, Gujarat, Bihar
Most searched teams
A look at the online popularity of the teams during IPL 7 on Google search suggests sporting enthusiasts and fans are religiously following their teams with Chennai Super Kings taking the top spot followed by Royal Challenger Bangalore on second in both IPL 6 and in the latest edition. Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders took the third and fourth spot, followed by Kings XI Punjab, Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Daredevils at the bottom.
