One is the Indian Cricket League (ICL), the other is called the Indian Premier League (IPL). One is headed by Zee Entertainment Enterprises, the other is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

If it’s Chennai Super Kings for IPL, it’s Chennai Superstars for ICL. IPL has Kings XI Punjab, while ICL has Chandigarh Lions. There’s one factor, however, that puts IPL way ahead of its counterpart, the players.

While the former has many cricketing greats of the past and present associated with it, ICL mostly has players who have retired, a long time ago, or those who haven’t really had such a huge impact on the cricketing world, as the likes of Sachin Tendulkar or Shane Warne.

There are a few big names like Inzamamul Haq, Marvan Atapattu and Chris Harris, but is it enough to create the same excitement IPL did earlier this year? "It’s not just about who’s part of the ICL, the presentation itself is way below the standards set by IPL," says journalist Shefali Sanghvi.

"The anchors and field reporters flirt like teenagers and talk about dress materials and ask questions like, ’Will the cheerleaders "boost" the morale of the teams?’ The IPL anchors were so composed and most of them knew the game. They were always talking cricket. These guys are resorting to sleaze to grab attention," Sanghvi adds.

Even the people associated with the two leagues off the field are a class apart. While Kapil Dev is supported by Dean Jones, Tony Greig and Ajit Wadekar, IPL has lined up a slew of heavy-duty names from Vijay Mallya and Mukesh Ambani to Shah Rukh Khan and Preity Zinta.

"IPL will be a tough cookie to crack. The best stars have been grabbed by the IPL. What Kapil Dev has is a set of leftovers and rebels. So, if I give IPL a nine, be it the number of people following it or the money it recovers, ICL would get a one. IPL’s first season was a huge success and set very high standards for T20 cricket tournaments," says brand expert Harish Bijoor.

The bigger question is, who’s watching the matches considering there’s also an international Test series happening right here at home? "The acid test for ICL is the size of the live audience it attracts. The television audience can be incidental or accidental and doesn’t pay to watch a match. In that aspect, ICL loses out," Harish says.

Any kind of competition is good, points out Shiv Pandit, one of the anchors in the IPL tournament. "ICL has got decent support. Competition of any kind only makes you perform better. It does not have a strong ratio of a new breed of cricketers. And IPL is set to have more young blood next season. We just have to wait and watch for a few more seasons to see which one of the two leagues will deliver," Shiv adds.