Odisha wants to own a Franchise in Women’s IPL 2023

Odisha, the sports capital of India is likely to be a home for a team in the upcoming inaugural edition of the Women’s Indian Premier League (W-IPL). It has been understood that the Odisha Cricket Association (OCA) has started discussions with the Sports and Youth Services department and different corporate houses in hopes of owning a franchise team in the W-IPL.

 

Odisha wants to own a Franchise in Women's IPL 2023. PC: Getty Images
Odisha wants to own a Franchise in Women’s IPL 2023. PC: Getty Images

 

The long wait for the Women’s IPL to get underway is now finally nearing an end. As reported earlier, the BCCI has reserved a window in March 2023 for the inaugural women’s IPL, and the process to get the show on the road is underway. To add on, the existing IPL franchises are to be given the first right of denying when it comes to buying teams and a lot more on and around the topic is expected to be discussed in the upcoming annual general meeting in September.

The voices from top offices for the launch of W-IPL have been making round and it has fans breathing fresh air. BCCI secretary, Mr Jay Shah in May said, “I am thrilled at the kind of response we have got from stakeholders. Multiple existing IPL teams have enquired and expressed serious interest in owning W-IPL franchises,”

BCCI President, Mr Saurav Ganguly early this had said, “We are at the level of formulation to have a full-fledged W-IPL. It is certainly going to happen. I strongly believe that next year (2023) will be a very good time to start a full-fledged women’s IPL which will be as big and grand a success as men’s IPL.”

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The Indian Premier League (IPL) in the men’s event has been running successfully ever since its launch and there have been occasions when fans have wished for franchises coming from the Northeast or at least Odisha. To all of those, this is a welcoming move with them set to try and grab the opportunity this time around.

Odisha Cricket Association secretary, Sanjay Behera, in his bit to The New Indian Express (TNIE) on the same said, “In the past, our State had Kalinga Lancers, a team for Hockey India League and at present, the State owns Odisha Juggernauts kho kho team. The State also supported Odisha FC, a team in ISL League. I am very much positive that we will also have our own cricket team in W-IPL.

“We had a discussion in this context with a multinational company Capri Global and its managing director had visited Barabati stadium. He expressed satisfaction over the infrastructure facilities.”

Mithali Raj, who announced her retirement from international cricket, and Jhulan Goswami who’s soon set to play her farewell game are also excited about the upcoming Women’s IPL and have expressed interest in coming out of retirement to feature in the league. In the recently launched ICC podcast ‘100% cricket’ Mithali Raj on the above said, “I’m keeping that option open. I’ve not yet decided. There are a few more months to go before the Women’s IPL happens. It would be lovely to be part of the first edition of the Women’s IPL.”

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The only wait among fans now is for an official verdict and press release for the Women’s Indian Premier League (W-IPL) to get underway and with it being a long-awaited one there’s no doubt that whenever the W-IPL gets up and running, hopefully, next year it’ll grandly be welcomed by viewers from all over the globe.

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