"IPL is the most powerful aspect of the game now" - Twitterati in awe of massive bids made for two new IPL teams

The BCCI recently announced that RPSG Ventures Ltd and Irelia Company Pte Ltd. (CVC Capital Partners) won bids for the two new IPL teams for massive sums of INR 7090 and 5625 crores, respectively. RPSG has bid for Lucknow while CVC bid for the Ahmedabad team.

After the addition of two teams, the IPL will be a ten-team affair from next year. The BCCI's media release about the announcement of the new teams read:

"BCCI is pleased to announce the following successful bidders (subject to definitive documentation and other formalities being completed): RPSG Ventures Ltd. – Lucknow (for INR 7090 crores), Irelia Company Pte Ltd. (CVC Capital Partners) – Ahmedabad (for INR 5625 crores)."

The statement continued:

"The new franchises will participate in IPL from 2022 season onwards subject to the bidders completing the post-bid formalities as specified in the ITT document. The IPL 2022 season will comprise of ten teams and will have 74 matches, wherein each team will play 7 home and 7 away matches."

Cricket fans were shocked to witness such massive bids for new IPL teams and expressed the same through their Twitter. The people of Uttar Pradesh were really excited to get a team for the first time in IPL history and expressed this sentiment through humorous tweets.

Here are some of the best reactions:

It is heartening to see the inclusion of two new teams at such a high valuation: Sourav Ganguly

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly extended a warm welcome to the two new IPL teams after the bidding process successfully concluded. He was thrilled and excited with the boost provided by them to the economy of BCCI. Speaking about brand new Lucknow and Ahmedabad franchises, Sourav Ganguly said:

"The BCCI is happy to welcome two new teams from the next season of the Indian Premier League. I would like to congratulate RPSG Ventures Ltd. & Irelia Company Pte Ltd for being the successful bidders. The IPL will now go to two new cities in India viz in Lucknow and Ahmedabad. It is heartening to see the inclusion of two new teams at such a high valuation."

He added:

"The inclusion of two new teams will bring more domestic cricketers from our country to the global stage. The ITT process included two interested bidders from outside of India, which strongly emphasises the global appeal of the IPL as a sports property. The IPL is proving to be a wonderful instrument in globalising the game of cricket."

The rules of retention and the league phase structure for IPL 2022 will be revealed soon by the BCCI. The mega auction ahead of the next edition of IPL will be a massive one as many high-profile players are expected to be a part of it.