Sourav Ganguly: The Indian Premier League (IPL) has taken men’s cricket to heights in India and prepared a solid mine of new players. In the last 14 years, many great players have emerged from this league, who have made their place in Team India. Along with this, Indian players have got special recognition in world cricket.
In such a situation, the demand for Women’s IPL has also been happening for a long time, but the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has postponed it for different reasons. Now Board President Sourav Ganguly has made a big announcement. Ganguly has said that BCCI is considering starting women’s IPL in 2023.
Despite starting the world’s first T20 league, the Indian Premier League, the Indian board has failed to start a women’s T20 league in the last 15 years. On the contrary, tournaments like Women’s Big Bash League and England T20 Blast and The Hundred have started in Australia.
In the recent past, Indian women cricketers also talked about the need for tournaments like IPL. Although BCCI ran a contest named Women’s T20 Challenge and IPL, only four matches are played in that tournament of 3 teams, which could be held for only two seasons.
A tournament as big as the men’s IPL in 2023
This attitude towards women’s cricket has drawn a lot of criticism from the BCCI, especially President Ganguly. Sourav Ganguly has told that the board is currently preparing for it, and from 2023, a tournament as big as the men’s IPL will start. Ganguly said in an interview to news agency PTI,
“We are working on preparing a comprehensive women’s IPL. This will happen. I am sure 2023 will be a good time to start a big women’s IPL, which will be as big and successful as the men’s IPL.”
There was a commotion over Sourav Ganguly statement.
Sourav Ganguly had recently said in an interview that the board wants to start the women’s IPL, but there is a need for a sufficient number of women players in the country. Ganguly’s statement raised many questions about his state association, the Cricket Association of Bengal, this week announced a six-team women’s T20 league with a draft of 90 players. For the time being, this year, women cricketers will once again have to deal with the 4-match T20 Challenge tournament.
