NOVEL WEB Chapter 688: Lachit's Trouble & Qualifiers
7th May 1660
The command centre of the defence line for the kingdoms of Lalishsthan and Persia is located in the shared region of Kirkuk. Kirkuk was perfect because it was already an area controlled equally by both kingdoms, which would avoid any trouble arising from choosing the location of the command centre. Most importantly, the military of the Bharatiya Empire had already decided to locate one of its overseas military bases in Kirkuk.
The report of the skirmish, sent by Brigadier General Cyrus Khodadadi, arrived at the command through the channels of the military hawk intelligence network.
The governing general of the command centre was none other than General Lachit Borphukan, the legendary war hero of the Ahoms and one of the most decorated military generals of the Bharatiya Empire.
Lachit Borphukan was appointed by the Bharatiya Empire as the commander of the battlefield in the Middle East.
Under his direct command was General Kaveh Atashban of the Kingdom of Persia and General Ezidi Serwan of Lalishsthan.
Holding the report in his hand, Lachit Borphukan frowned. He took on a dignified appearance. Kaveh Atashban and Ezidi Serwan, who were called to a meeting by Commander Borphukan, were stunned to see such an expression from the always calm and collected commander.
"Sir, what happened?" Kaveh Atashban asked carefully. In front of Lachit Borphukan, he had to be humble and follow military etiquette. He might be the prince of the Persian Kingdom, but in front of the general from the Bharatiya Empire, he was nothing.
Ezidi Serwan looked curiously at the commander. He was also confused; he did not know what had caused the general to be so serious.
Lachit Borphukan didn't have any words for the pair of major generals. Instead, he simply passed over the report.
Moving forward and bending their heads to read the report that was placed on the table, both Ezidi and Kaveh were taken aback. They looked at each other in shock.
"This..."
Kaveh took in a big gulp. "Commander, this is not good." He was not a fool; he could already understand what the Ottoman Empire was planning to do.
"Indeed, things are not looking good," Lachit Borphukan nodded. "The Skirmish was simply a test put forward by the Ottomans to see how we would react."
"Unfortunately, they got what they wanted. They now know how we are defending the border, how long it will take for reinforcements to arrive, what type of firepower to expect, and they might have even accounted for the increase in firepower after the stunt they have pulled."
"Even though they lost the battle, they now have more intel on us than we do on them. In the end, they tested their ultimate weapon and succeeded. It was not the 12-kilogram cannon but the method that was used to bring the 12-kilogram cannon to our doorstep. Those inhuman bastards succeeded in using the black slaves as transport animals. Very soon, black people will be enslaved by the thousands and used as disposable transportation objects for the war efforts of the Ottoman Empire. Throughout the stretch of the border—the whole 1,300 km of it—is no longer free."
Kaveh Atashbaan nodded, his face dignified. He had already realized this.
*Sigh!*
Lachit Borphukan let out an exasperated sigh.
Ezidi Serwan, who was a little slow to understand, immediately realized how serious the trouble was. His face became gloomy, and a hint of worry could be seen in his eyes.
Lachit Borphukan was deep in thought. He was wondering whether he could do anything about it, but apart from being proactive and taking the initiative to launch the attack, there wasn't much he could do. The defensive line would eventually be run over if hundreds of thousands of black slaves were used as transportation objects by the Ottoman Empire. What's worse, if the Ottomans used the blacks as meat shields, he could not even imagine what the outcome would be.
"His Majesty should know about this!"
He immediately picked up the pen and paper
----
Akhand Bharatiya Empire, Simhasana Bhavana, Bengalore
Vijay was not aware of what was happening at the defence line In the Middle East. The news would take at least half a day more to reach him.
"Your Majesty, Minister Maharana Pratap has requested a dialogue with you," Ganesh informed out of nowhere.
Vijay was taken aback. "Maharana Pratap? Why is he here?" He stroked his chin and asked, "Is he here in the building?"
"Yes, Your Majesty, he is waiting in the hall!"
"Alright, bring him in!"
Moments later, Maharana Pratap entered the office with a namaskara.
Vijay closed the document he was reviewing and looked at the man sitting opposite him. "So, Pratap, you wanted to see me. What is it?"
Maharana Pratap didn't have any stage fright. "Your Majesty, the tournaments are going to be starting in a few months..."
Vijay immediately cut him off. "There are still 7 months, Pratap. What do you mean a few months?"
"Ah!" Maharana Pratap was immediately made speechless, but he still explained.
"Yes, Your Majesty, 7 months, but according to the regulations of three teams per state in a sport, there are a total of 68 teams in each game. Given that the tournament can only last for two months, it is impossible for all 68 teams to play within the time span."
"We can theoretically conduct two matches per day and get the qualifiers over within the first month, and the second month could be used for semifinals and finals. But, Your Majesty, I feel if the schedule is too dense, there won't be a lot of excitement generated."
Vijay momentarily froze. He really didn't consider the schedule conflicts. Even without the tournament being held, he knew how disastrous it would have been if the matches were so tightly packed. A rain would be enough to destroy the whole tournament.
Vijay looked at Maharana Pratap in a different light. 'Who knew this guy had such keen insights into scheduling and organization'. The reason Pratap was chosen as the Minister of Sports was, first of all, because he was involved in sports, and secondly, because he had a business-minded vision. The side of him where he would consider the entertainment value and scheduling was not seen.
"Do you have any ideas?" Vijay asked, curious. He wanted to see how prepared Pratap was.
Maharana Pratap didn't feel shy or nervous. He boldly nodded. "Your Majesty, it will be best if each league divides the teams into four tiers: Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3, and Tier 4."
"Let the qualifiers start a few months early. All 68 teams will play with each other, with each team getting five matches. Winning matches, losing matches, draws, winning by what lead, losing by what lead, winning by what run rate, and losing by what run rate will all be considered, and points will be assigned."
"The point system could be used in other sports as well according to the parameters of the sport."
"Twenty teams with the highest points will be promoted to Tier 3."
"Sixteen teams from Tier 3 will be promoted to Tier 2, and finally, 10 teams from Tier 2 will be promoted to Tier 1."
"Only the 10 teams in Tier 1 will participate in the two-month-long tournament."
"This should give the leagues and franchises enough time to build up excitement for each of the matches in their respective states and districts. The investment of the Sports League could be concentrated on the select premium matches, giving the audience a better, bigger, and overall more entertaining experience. This would naturally attract more audience, a higher quality of audience, and audience members who are willing to pay large amounts of money to watch the game, all of which will translate into larger and more lucrative revenue for everyone."
"Also," He paused briefly and continued,
"In terms of management, With fewer games in the tournament, it should give us enough time to schedule matches in different parts of the empire. The qualifier played before the tournament could be used as a promotion for the final tournament and a story could be built for each. And, more importantly, if anything goes wrong, the franchise owners, league managers, and the Ministry of Sports will have ample time to make changes."
Vijay fell into deep thought. What he said made sense, and he wanted to emulate the success of the Premier League in the first place.
He prefers fewer quality matches over a large quantity of mediocre teams playing each other any day.
What's more, by conducting the qualifiers earlier, fans of the sport from the home cities and states can come to watch their local team play. The issue of skill wouldn't be a big problem. This should increase the revenue for everyone as well.
"Alright, I agree with your suggestion. But Pratap, do you know if all the teams have been formed?" Vijay asked as he had not paid attention to the matter of the leagues for a long time. His mind was occupied by other important things.
"They are your majesty. By January all the teams have been formed, and their applications have already been submitted to the Ministry of Sports for authentication."
Vijay nodded. "So, when do you plan to start the qualifiers?"
Maharana Pratap thought for a while and gave his answer. "Your majesty, I think we can start the qualifiers for the Bharatiya Premier League right after the Aikyotsava Festival in July. People will be very enthusiastic about sports right after the festival, so I think it is an excellent time to start the qualifiers. Moreover, from July to February, there is a six-month gap. This should be enough time to select the teams to participate in the tournament."
"Qualifiers for Unity Football, Bharat Pro Rugby League, Pro Kabaddi League, and Ultimate Kho Kho could start one month after the previous one starts."
"This will form a nice cycle."
Vijay nodded.
"Ganesh, summon the managers of all the leagues."
Moments later, the five managers of the only five sporting leagues in the Bharatiya Empire arrived at the Simhasana Bhavana.
Harbhajan Singh, Bhagwan Peshwa, Bhargav Shetty, Tejas Kulkarni, and Jashwant Reddy all stood in front of Vijay with doubt and apprehension.
looking at the Minister of Sports present in the office, their nervousness only increased.
Vijay did not continue to keep them in suspense; he asked Maharana Pratap to explain to them the matter of qualifiers and the tier competition system.
The managers, listening to the explanation of the Minister of Sports, had enlightened expressions on their faces. They quickly understood why they were called.
"So, considering everything the Minister mentioned, will the franchises be ready with their teams for the qualifiers that will start right after the Aikyotsava Festival?"
Harbhajan Singh, the manager of the Bharatiya Premier League, knew that the question was directed at him because it was the qualifiers for BPL that would start first.
"Your majesty, all 68 franchises are ready with their teams."
"It is no problem to start the qualifiers at the end of July."
Vijay was satisfied. "Very good. What about sponsorships? Have all the franchises obtained sponsorships?"
Harbhajan Singh thought for a while and hesitantly nodded. "They did, Your Majesty, but since this is the first time the tournament is being conducted, no one knows which team is the best. So, except for the team that consists of some recognizable players, all the other teams are sponsored by their local industries. Overall, the sponsorship earned is not too big."
"My belief is that after the qualifiers if we allow the teams to choose sponsors again, the sponsorship money should be larger."
Vijay thought for a while and shook his head. "No, let it be. Once the sponsor is chosen, it cannot be changed unless there is a problem with legality or a problem with the company sponsoring the team. Otherwise, the team has no right to unilaterally change their sponsor." Your next chapter awaits on empire
Harbhajan Singh nodded in agreement. The other managers, who knew they would have to start their qualifiers right after Harbhajan Singh, also noted down the instructions carefully.
Maharana Pratap passed the notes he had prepared about the tier system and points system he developed to Harbhajan Singh so that it would be used as a reference.
P.S. 23 states including Delhi (pseudo-state), Delhi only has 1 slot as well as Bangalore, so 22*3 =66, 66+2 = 68 Teams