The Indian Premier League (IPL) is undoubtedly the greatest Twenty20 (T20) league in the world and is getting bigger with each passing season. Meanwhile, there are reports that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is contemplating expanding it to 10 teams, to increase the level of competition, even further.
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In the meantime, the BCCI is all set to host its Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Ahmedabad on Thursday. While a decision on a 10-team IPL would be one of the major talking points, it also remains to be seen if the same could be held in 2021, or could be pushed back to 2022.
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"There are a lot of modalities that needs to be discussed and most of the stakeholders feel that with IPL being held in April, there is very little time for a mega auction and to have a uniform retention policy, agreeable to all the existing franchises," a BCCI official was quoted as saying to PTI.
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"You have to invite tenders and have a bidding process ready. In case you have two teams winning bids in late January or early February, they need to be given time for auction which can then be held only in March. That leaves a new team with very little time to plan," added the official.
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A 10-team affair would mean the tournament running for more than two months, as it could heavily affect the international calendar. Besides, the availability of international players for so long could also be an issue.
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Other than that, the broadcast deal is also likely to be re-negotiated. As of now, Star Sports pays ₹16,347.50 crore for its current contract that runs through 2022, which happens to be for 60 matches per season.
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The IPL has previously been a 10-team affair, in 2011, which saw two new teams, in the form of Pune Warriors India (PWI) and Kochi Tuskers Kerala (KTK). As for this upcoming AGM, business administrator, Gautam Adani is scheduled to be a part of it, along with the preceding owner of Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS), Sanjeev Goenka.
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