IPL to get two-and-a-half-month window in next ICC FTP, says Jay Shah

The world’s biggest franchise-based cricket tournament- The Indian Premier League- is set to have an expanded 10-weeks window in order to let more players from all over the world participate in the prestigious tournament. The IPL this year witnessed two news teams being added with a total of 70 league games being played, in addition to the four playoff games.

Disney+Star renewed its partnership with the IPL as a result of winning the bid for Package A, which included the TV rights in India, for an astounding INR 23,575 crore, in the competitive bidding process for the media rights. Meanwhile, the media organization Viacom18, which is owned by Reliance Industries, paid a staggering INR 20,500 crore to purchase digital rights in India.

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah revealed that IPL has no immediate intentions to add additional franchises, and any foreseeable additions must not degrade the standard of the final product.

“We are in discussions with the ICC (International Cricket Council) and several other cricket boards to have an exclusive window for the IPL. Let me assure you that there will be a two-and-a-half-month window in the next ICC FTP (Future Tours Programme) calendar so that all top international players can participate. Since this tournament benefits all, we have received a positive response from the ICC and other member boards,” Shah was quoted by Khaleej Times.

International cricket in India is essentially suspended during the two-months-period of the IPL as all the Indian players are a part of the tournament. From 74 games currently, the BCCI plans to expand the IPL to 94 games by the year 2027. The 2024-2031 FTP calendar will probably be discussed by the ruling ICC next month. The IPL expanded its wings after the media rights auction to become the second most prestigious league in the world.

“Expanding the IPL further will depend on many factors like expanding the talent pool with no compromise on the quality of talent, strengthening grassroots, building the right infrastructure, and many other factors. The BCCI remains committed to international cricket and it’s not just the marquee series like India v England or India v Australia. We want to design a comprehensive calendar where we aim to help associate nations with consistent and regular bilateral tours,” he added.