Cricket overdose? IPL TV ratings and Google search numbers tell a different story

There were just 11 days between the World Cup ending and the IPL (Indian Premier League) starting. Now that would usually mean an overdose of cricket — too much and too soon. However, TV ratings and Google search analytics tell a different story — the gist of which comes down to this — cricket is still being watched and searched for like crazy.Believe it or not, numbers released by TAM say that the first five matches of the ongoing IPL edition were sampled by 105 million unique viewers, which means a 9 percent increase compared to IPL 7 (2014). As for TV ratings, the jump is a whopping 42 percent — up to 4.5 from 3.1. Overall, 39 per cent of the All India Universe tuned in to watch IPL 8 matches.[caption id="attachment_2196330" align="alignleft" width="380"] File picture of Robin Uthappa, who plays for KKR. BCCI[/caption]According to a report on Best Media Info, there was also an increase in the amount of time spent by viewers while the IPL was being broadcast (up by 22 percent). However, the opening ceremony saw measly ratings of 0.94.Google numbers are even more astounding — partly because they compared engagement on the internet with the 50-over World Cup, which is cricket's showcase event. And IPL 8 has even beaten search trends for World Cup 2015 — that too, in just 10 days.While the Indian Premier League's first six seasons saw a continuous rise in Google trends, the seventh season saw a bit of dip, but interest has piqued again.According to a One India report, the popularity of teams as per searches is in this order: Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab. The numbers also suggest that West Bengal is the state which follows the IPL most ardently.These numbers show that the notion of people caring less about the IPL this year is a myth. In fact, they prove that the IPL is truly 'India ka tyohaar'.Click here for the full One India report, and here for the Best Media Info report.