Gone are the days when Indian summer was only about enjoying the Indian Premier League (IPL). As of now, only the men are donning the jersey of their respective franchises and entertaining the spectators with top quality cricket in various cities. But after 2023 the trend will completely change. It is going to be a historic year for Indian cricket as the world will witness the country’s first full-fledged women’s T20 league, which will be called the Women’s Premier League (WPL).
5 teams and hundreds of cricketers from across the globe bring unlimited action for sports fans. WPL will not only highlight India’s cricket culture on the world map but also showcase how women can dominate the gentlemen’s game.
News18 CricketNext gets into an exclusive conversation with WV Raman, former head coach of the Indian women’s cricket team, to talk about the impact of the WPL and its other important aspects.
Here are excerpts from the conversation:
A T20 league for women, first time in India. How widespread is the development?
I think it’s going to be huge because we all know how well the girls have been playing over the years and everyone has been waiting for this to happen, something like this to happen and now that it’s happening Yes, I’m sure this will be the biggest turning point in Indian women’s cricket. You see, there’s a lot of exciting talent and you’ll see a lot of people in cricket as well which is fantastic and I’m sure it won’t be long before India Becomes a big force in this vertical in international cricket as well.
This announcement has only created a huge buzz around the world and foreign players have started reacting. How will this league change the face of women’s cricket in India and across the world?
yes of course! Because there were a lot of hopes and expectations from the cricketers of different countries, for the simple reason that they know how well BCCI works and at what scale it does it. Surely they must have seen what has happened in the last decade and a half with respect to IPL. And at the same time, they should be aware of the fact that IPL is the leading brand if not the leading brand across the globe. The impression would obviously be that the BCCI would ensure that WPL also becomes a big brand.
And once that happens, and which is obviously going to happen in the future, I’m sure it’s going to be party time for all cricketers, not just in terms of competitive cricket that they get to play in India. Meets where a large number of players take to the field. They will also be seen in millions of living rooms and of course the monetary factor too. They are clearly watching and expecting that the financial figures are also going to multiply on a regular basis in future as far as their earnings are concerned.
Years ago when IPL used to be a big thing and there was no such tournament for women. Was this a topic of discussion in the Indian women’s dressing room? What kind of things did you talk about?
It used to be a bit of a trial run as far as the BCCI was concerned as they were trying to test the waters to see what they could do next and to approach the Premier League for girls. are going So, in that regard, BCCI wanted to get a little bit of confirmation, that they can kickstart the mega league and keep it going. So, it was probably a good thing for the BCCI as there is no point in starting anything without being fully prepared or aware of how they are going to run it and maintain it.
As far as girls are concerned, obviously, Razzmatazz, the popularity of individuals and the growth of individual brands through IPL has always made girls wonder when it is going to start for them. So, they were very excited that it was going to start sooner or later. And a lot of talk about how cricket will benefit him. The general feeling was that once this league starts, more girls will take up cricket and there will be reassurance that cricket can be a career option for girls as well.
More than 1000 players have registered themselves. How grand is the WPL auction going to be?
I don’t know what that number would be if a player could be bid for, but if you look at the guys who have put themselves in the book, 1000 is a great start. this is wonderful. If you are talking about players registering themselves for the auction and so that in itself is an indication of the level it can reach in the years to come. But, of course, apparently so far it’s only got 5 sides. We’ll probably see more 3 sides being added in the years to come, maybe in the next 3 to 4 years time, whenever that happens. I am sure there will be many more who will get opportunities. But as of now, what it will do is, with so many people being a part of this league, it will create some great competition in terms of the team combinations that the franchises will put out and also in terms of the teams that they will put out. So, it’s going to be a really exciting time.
Who can land the biggest deal – an Indian player or a foreigner?
It is a bit difficult to answer at the moment as the dynamics will depend on the availability of players. Also, would a franchise want to build a team for next 2-3 years and it would also depend on whether a franchise wants to invest in youngsters for years to come so that together they dominate for a long period of time . So, I would all depend on the objectives of the franchisee.
But, nevertheless, it is a fact that there is going to be a lot of interest across the globe and I am sure, it is going to be a bumper lottery time for a lot of top names in international women’s cricket.
BCCI became very rich by selling media rights and franchise of WPL. Is this a sustainable deal from a future perspective?
One thing we all can take a lot of heart and in a way be proud of is the way BCCI has managed its IPL brand. He has faced many challenges, almost on a yearly basis. Nevertheless, he made sure that the brand should continue and grow in every way. Be it popularity in terms of financial numbers. So, we can expect the BCCI to reciprocate the same when it comes to maintaining and growing the brand of WPL.
People can say many things against BCCI but to have sustained something like IPL over a period of 15 years despite huge challenges is a testament to what they can do in terms of making a brand a global brand.
Reports suggest that you have been approached by the Delhi franchise for the coaching role. What would you like to say about that?
So far I can only see that nothing has been decided yet and if anything happens you will probably know from me very soon. There was a little discussion but it did not go to the next stage.
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