WPL and IPL final probable dates announced

The inaugural edition of the Women's Premier League (WPL) will likely start on March 4 and go on until March 24. ESPN Cricinfo has also reported that the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) final is expected to take place on May 28 after commencing on March 31 or April 1.

The BCCI has tried to fit in the WPL between the Women's T20 World Cup, which will run from February 10-26, and the start of the men's IPL, which will take place at the same venues as the WPL fixtures.

The board plans to end the WPL at least a week before the men's IPL begins to allow the grounds to stay fresh.

IPL chairman Arun Dhumal stated that the schedule and venues remain a work in progress, while BCCI secretary Jay Shah hinted that the player auction will likely take place in the first week of February.

Dhumal said, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:

"With regard to the venues for the first season, we are still talking. That is a work in progress. We will have to see logistical challenges involved in case the WPL has to be a multi-city value or single-city value."

The teams are likely to have an auction purse of INR 12 crores each to build their squads, which will include between 15 and 18 players.

Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, and Royal Challengers Bangalore win bids to own WPL teams

RCB logo. (Image Credits: Twitter)

The owners of the men's IPL teams Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, and the Royal Challengers Bangalore as well as the Adani Group and Capri Global have secured bids to own five franchises. The teams shall be based in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad and Lucknow, respectively.

The bidding process took place in Mumbai on Wednesday (January 25) as the BCCI fetched a record sum of INR 4669.99 crore. Ahmedabad became the most expensive franchise, sold for INR 1289 crore, followed by Mumbai (INR 912.99 crore), Bengaluru (INR 901 crore), Delhi (INR 810 crore), and Lucknow (INR 757 crore).

Dhumal said he hopes to make the season the most competitive and highly enjoyable for the fans, stating:

"Out of five successful bidders, four are existing partners in the BCCI. They have seen and grown with us in the last 15 years. So they are the best guys to evaluate. Our job is to make sure the tournament comes out to be most competitive and most loved and engaging for the fans."

Meanwhile, Jay Shah termed Wednesday 'another red-letter day'.