Ness Wadia pushes for bigger IPL window, backs Champions League T20 revival

Punjab Kings co-owner Ness Wadia is all for the revival of the Champions League but first he would like to see more games added to the Indian Premier League window.

During the previous edition, IPL chairman Arun Dhumal had spoken about the possibility of increasing the number of games from the existing 74 to 94 from 2028 when the next media rights cycle starts.

Speaking to PTI, Wadia said more games would be prudent for the IPL while the return of the Champions League T20 would reduce the long gap between the IPL and the auction. He also welcomed the trend of holding the auction overseas.

The IPL is usually held in the March-May window while the auction is held in December.

“The BCCI and everyone involved, all the franchises, all of us together, we should look back and be very proud of what has been achieved. Going forward, it would be good to have more matches, we can start with two extra games (for every team),” said Wadia.

“Also, at some point, we need to look at reviving the Champions League to shorten the gap between the end of the IPL and the auction and keep that excitement alive.

“And bringing in the international exposure by having auctions in Jeddah, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi (next month), that only brings more eyeballs and gets a better connect for IPL as a brand.”

The stakeholders, including the BCCI and other boards, are working to revive the Champions League as early as next year. The last edition of that tournament held in 2014 involved T20 franchises from around the world competing against each other.

“One would want an extension of the IPL, which I hope will happen sooner than later. As far as the Champions League is concerned, maybe it was too early at the time (back in 2014). Maybe there were things to learn from it. But I think conceptually, it’s a good concept. It really makes us have more exposure," he said.

“If you look at football, there’s the league games, there’s the international games, and then there’s the championships games between the UEFA Champions League and European League, etc. But here we’ve got the IPL, you’ve got Indian cricket, and other countries that are playing, which people watch. If you have the Champions League, I think that triangle would be a good thing to do. But definitely, we need more matches in the IPL first,” said Wadia whose team reached its first IPL final since 2014 this year under a new captain-coach combination of Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting.

A bigger window for the IPL would help in increasing its overall brand value. The league is only behind NFL in terms of per match value but still lags behind the likes of NBA and the EPL in terms of overall value due to a shorter window.

With bilateral cricket remaining an integral part of international cricket and mushrooming of other T20 leagues where IPL owners are involved, increasing the IPL window is tougher than ever. The window for ICC events needs to be factored in too.

“So, there’s a lot of things to balance out. You just don’t have the IPL, there is international cricket with multiple formats, which is not the case with football. The IPL since it came in, has managed to keep the window it is. And I think if we can just expand that window, the horizon of the IPL increases,” said Wadia.

IPL valuation will mirror India’s growth

Keeping in mind the space constraints for a bigger window, how would brand value of IPL grow in the next decade?

“Of course, the value would go up. At the end of the day, it’s again difficult to compare (IPL with the likes of NFL, NBA, EPL). Because those are established leagues and have been running for decades. They don’t have the same international and domestic responsibilities compared to the IPL.

“India is an emerging market and it is getting there and another very important part we need to keep in mind is the disposable income to come and enjoy the IPL experience with all its thrills and frills. People are doing it now in India but you can’t compare with the established sporting leagues because the disposable income is much, much higher in those countries,” reasoned Wadia.

On the trend of IPL owners investing in overseas leagues, Wadia said it is a testament to the league’s resounding success.