The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is finally going to make a decision regarding new IPL teams during the annual general meeting on December 24. There has been constant speculation regarding new teams ever since IPL 2020 concluded in the UAE on November 10.
BCCI Secretary Jay Shah mentioned the topic about new IPL teams amongst 23 other issues in a notice earlier this week. The annual general meeting is also likely to make a decision regarding domestic cricket as state cricket boards want to organize the Syed Mushtaq Ali T-20 tournament at the start of the new season.
The addition of one team has been widely touted in the media, while few reports are saying that there could be two teams. If a new team is introduced, then there is a huge possibility of a major auction before the start of the new season in 2021. The initial reports also said that BCCI would release the tender for the ninth team after Diwali. However, BCCI didn’t make any official statement regarding this situation.
Goenka and Adani groups are reportedly interested in buying a team in the IPL. Considering the new season is just four months away, there is a lot of work BCCI needs to do to expand the league from eight teams to nine or ten teams. It also remains to be seen which cities will be represented by the new teams as Ahmedabad is reportedly the first-choice option.
In the past, it has not been plain sailing for BCCI when they decided to add new teams, so it will be intriguing to see their approach this time. The addition of new teams in IPL is surely going to be a big boost to Indian Cricket.