Indisputably, cricket is much more than merely a sport in India and despite the fact that it’s not the national sport of the country, Indians follow it passionately, just like a religion. People’s love for cricket can be observed by the fact that it is given much hype and attention. At one fell swoop, it’s more popular than any other game and cricketers are counted among the biggest celebrities in India. What’s more, IPL can be considered as the most famous franchise-based cricket tournament globally and there’s not the least doubt about it.
Taking into account the same, chairman Rajeev Shukla has recently made an announcement, confirming that BCCI is making up mind of organizing IPL’s mini edition and UAE might be the preferred destination for the same.
Here’s what Rajeev told Gulf News when ICC Champions Trophy was being played in Edgbaston,
“One concept that we are deliberating and considering is launching a mini edition of the IPL overseas. We have seen that there is huge attraction for IPL overseas. Earlier, we used to stage our Champions League T20 abroad and that slot is still vacant. We are thinking of a mini edition in that slot.”
On being asked about Dubai as the venue, he stated that organizers would definitely prefer it over other destinations. Just to inform, since general elections were going on in India in 2014, it was Dubai that hosted IPL 7 first leg.
Indian Premier League might go through enormous changes after its 10th season finished. In recent times, a significant advancement was seen when the title sponsorship deal was renewed by VIVO for next 5 years for a whopping amount of Rs, 2,100 crore.
Rajeev disclosed plans for the next decade as he stated,
“The next 10 years are going to be interesting. We are changing the revenue sharing model. Earlier franchises took the license fee but now they will be sharing the revenue with the BCCI. Another important thing is about tenders for the broadcasters. In fact, broadcasters’ tenders will be out in July and we are expecting manifold rise in it.”
As per him, IPL’s timing was perfect this year as it held prior to Champions Trophy. In his words,
“The Indian players had played in the IPL before the Champions Trophy and so they were already fit and were in rhythm. IPL also creates bonhomie among the players as they have been playing together for different teams.”
In addition, he denied any rumor of introducing more teams in Indian Premier League, as he said,
“So far we have decided for eight teams only, otherwise the season will get extended and that will be a problem. If we go for 10 teams, we will have to stage minimum 84 matches. However, the governing council will be considering it but so far the tender will be only for eight teams.”
This is definitely a great piece of news for cricket lovers!! Are you excited?
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