The Women’s Premier League (WPL), which just finished its inaugural season last month, may have a Diwali window, according to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The IPL may conflict with domestic international matches during its festival season, but the BCCI prefers a gap between the IPL and WPL.
The IPL had begun five days after the WPL on March 26 of this year had ended. The IPL’s home and away format, which was unable to be held this year due to lack of time, will also be introduced by the BCCI.
According to Jay Shah on Friday, “We are considering the possibility of scheduling the WPL, in the home-and-away format, in the Diwali window; not two seasons in a year, but simply a different time window.”
Because the BCCI thinks there is a loyal audience for women’s cricket, the home and away format has been introduced for the five-team WPL.
The BCCI secretary further stated, in an interview with journalists on Friday (April 14), “Women’s cricket now has a dedicated audience base and this number will only keep growing as we hope for a positive response with great enthusiasm at the next WPL.”
WPL 2023 was a successful tournament
He claimed that with a total audience reach of 50.78 million, the first iteration of the WPL was a great success. With a TVR of 0.41 and a 15-person audience across all of India, the RCB vs. MI match was the most watched game.
Using data from BARC, Shah revealed that the Gujarat Giants vs. RCB game had received 0.4 TVR, making it the second-most watched game.
Shreyanka Patil and Kanika Ahuja (both of Royal Challengers Bangalore) are two examples of uncapped domestic athletes who have made their debuts in the WPL.
The Mumbai Indians Jintimani Kalita and Saika Ishaque also attracted attention with their steady performances. Given the continued upward trend that women’s cricket in India is experiencing, Shah said, “The WPL 2023 bears testimony to BCCI’s capability to pull off a first-of-its-kind event.”
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