Why does cricket need cheerleaders

This is what the renowned Indian historian Ramachandra Guha had to say about the cheerleaders controversy in the IPL:

"All the organisers are doing by making scantily-clad white women dance in front of huge crowds is to stoke the base voyeuristic and sexual insecurities of the Indian male. It is revolting, appalling and shows the game in very poor light."

I cannot help but completely agree with Mr. Guha. Revolting and appalling, yes, but I could've come up with that. Stoking the "base voyeuristic and sexual insecurities of the Indian male"- now that is gold!! I think that is such an accurate observation that people in India have generally chosen to ignore it, because to acknowledge it would open a veritable pandora's box of issues that Indian soceity does not want to confront. I'm surpised that feminist groups in India havent picked up on the cheerleaders debate and made their voices heard.

Personally, I think the distasteful way in which the IPL has deployed cheerleaders is just another expression of the gender inequalities and misogyny that is so prevalent in contemporary India. We see enough objectification of women in movies- now, cricket, the other major entertainer in India, has also joined in. It is the one major blight on the IPL so far.

I was very happy when the Delhi Daredevils (my team, as it happens) decided against having their own troop of cheerleaders. Mumbai and Chennai, under pressure from conservative governments, both dumped their scantily-clad foreign cheerleaders, instead hiring strange squads of Indian cheerleaders. These squads are composed of 2 men and 2 women, not scantily-clad of course, whose cheerleading is rather lethargic and soporific. I'm not sure that there's a point to it, but its certainly better than the other teams, with their troops of American (mostly) cheerleaders.