Women's IPL likely from March 3, final on March 26

The inaugural edition of the Women's Indian Premier League 2023 (WIPL) is lilely to be played from March 3 to 26 in India. In a big boost for women's cricket in India, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) introduced the plans for the inaugural tournament at the Annual General Meeting in October, however, the dates and schedule for the tournament are yet to finalised.

As per an ESPNcricinfo report, the BCCI is looking to organise the tournament a week after the conclusion of the 2023 Women's T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to start on February 10 in South Africa. The first WIPL is set to be a five-team affair with 22 matches in India. Each team will have 18 players, with a maximum of six overseas players, and can name five foreign players in their playing eleven (four from full member nations and one from an associate nation).

Each team will play the other teams twice, making it 20 group-stage matches and the table topper will qualify for the finals. The second and third-placed teams will clash in the eliminator fixture to win a second-finalist spot. 

Earlier on Friday (December 9), the BCCI invited bids for the media rights for the Women's IPL 2023-2027. The bids will be opened around January 8 and the last date to pick tenders is set at December 31. The entire process will go through a closed bid instead of an e-auction. The BCCI has not set any base price for any category. The three categories for media rights will be television, digital, and a combination of both.

Meanwhile, the BCCI will be conducting the mini-auction for the IPL 2023 but is yet to formalize the men's tournament dates. It has been reported that the board is awaiting on the confirmation on the availability of the overseas players. They are also looking to conclude the season before the end of May as India stand a chance to play in the World Test Championship final, which is likely to take place at The Oval on June 7.