The stage has been set for the Women’s Indian Premier League (WIPL) as three IPL teams and two new entrants have spent a combined total of Rs 4669 Cr to secure five founding teams of the league. The Adani Group, who had failed to secure an IPL team in the past, has finally entered Indian cricket with the highest bid of Rs 1,289 Cr, and will operate the Ahmedabad franchise. The Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mumbai Indians, and Delhi Capitals are three IPL teams who will also own WIPL teams. The other new entrant is Capri Global, who already own a team in the Indian League Twenty20 (ILT20).
Reliance-backed Mumbai Indians were the second highest bidder with Rs 912 Cr and will operate the Mumbai franchise. Diageo-backed Royal Challengers Bangalore will operate from Bengaluru after spending Rs 901 Cr to secure the team. JSW-GMR-backed Delhi Capitals will operate the Delhi franchise after spending Rs 810 Cr. Capri Global has secured the Lucknow franchise for Rs 757 Cr.
The President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Mr. Roger Binny, congratulated the winners for making successful bids to own WIPL teams. He stated that the league will give players from India and abroad a chance to learn and grow together and pave the way for development at the grassroots level with the inclusion of more women cricketers. He also congratulated the BCCI team for the smooth execution of the auction process and expressed confidence that the league will help Indian women cricketers shine on the global stage.
Out of the seven teams, six already own teams in other leagues. Only the Royal Challengers Bangalore are without a team in foreign leagues. All of them will now aim to add a women’s team to their growing portfolio. However, only five of them can own a team and they will also have heavy competition from big players such as the Adani Group.
On Monday, the BCCI received 17 technical bids, out of which 10 were from non-IPL team owners. Among them, the Adani Group was looking to make an entry after missing out on an IPL team last time.
The question on many people’s minds is why Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), and Gujarat Titans (GT) are not bidding for WIPL teams. According to a report by Cricbuzz, a Chennai Super Kings official confirmed the decision saying it was a strategic business call. However, it has been understood that CSK was not eligible as the BCCI had set a Rs 1,000 Cr valuation for the parent company. In the case of Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans, they are still in the loss following their successful bids for Men’s IPL teams, hence it was a business decision to not bid for WIPL teams.
The deadline for submission of the financial bids for the five teams is Wednesday morning. After this, the BCCI will reveal the owners of the five franchises in WIPL. It’s a close bidding affair, which means the bidders will have to put their best foot forward.
This is another windfall for the BCCI, as they have already bagged Rs 951 Cr from Viacom18 for WIPL Media Rights. In addition, the BCCI has now bagged Rs 4669 Cr from the auction of five new teams. To remind everyone, the BCCI sold IPL Media Rights for Rs 48,390 Cr and two new IPL teams for Rs 12,715 Cr. The BCCI expects around Rs 500-800 Cr for each WIPL team.
