The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is making history by allowing five foreign players in the playing XI, with at least one cricketer from an Associate country, in the inaugural edition of the Women’s Indian Premier League. This is a game-changer, folks. The male counterparts can only play four foreign players in the playing XI, and no other board has made any such provision in the past across Women’s T20 leagues.
But that’s not all, the BCCI has also set a salary cap of INR 12 crore for the WIPL, with an annual increment of INR 1.5 crore for the next four years, reaching INR 18 crore by the end of the first five-year cycle (by 2027).
And when it comes to the teams, the BCCI has concluded the closed bidding process on January 25, and as per reports, they have sold 29 ITTs so far, with at least 15 of them showing interest in owning and operating a team in the Women’s IPL. With the tournament set to begin on March 4, and finals on March 26, at the Brabourne Stadium and DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai, the Women’s IPL is going to be a league to watch out for.
And let’s not forget, the BCCI recently sold the media rights for a whopping INR 951 crore to Viacom 18, which means they will earn INR 7.09 crores per WIPL game.
