Important day for WIPL as technical bids get underway now
- On Monday, January 23rd, a clear picture of who is truly interested in investing heavily in women’s cricket in India will emerge. Those who hold the Women’s Indian Premier League (WIPL) Invitation To Tender (ITT) document will soon be required to submit their technical bids. On Monday morning at 10 a.m., the clock will start ticking.
- The financial bids will need to be submitted two days later but the technical bids will provide a good idea about the firms interested in buying the five WIPL teams, which will be announced following the financial bids on Wednesday (January 25). (January 25).
- Given that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has set a net worth clause of INR 1000 crore, it is safe to assume that certain major corporations will be among those five. The proceedings on Monday may validate widespread rumors about the Ambanis and the Adanis, two of the wealthiest families in India and the world.
Because Mumbai Indians is the wealthiest IPL club, the Ambanis are widely expected to bid heavily in the WIPL auction. However, the Adanis have been somewhat quiet as of late. After failing to secure the Ahmedabad franchise in the IPL auction, they have gone relatively unnoticed. They may have learned from their mistakes and are playing it safe by keeping a low profile and avoiding the media this time around. - The BCCI has made available the following cities as potential home arenas for franchises: Bengaluru, Chennai, Guwahati, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Nagpur. It’s clear that the IPL teams will have an edge if they’re able to buy out the WIPL, but on the night of the technical bidding, some major franchises are rumored to be staying away. Other than the defending champions, the IPL is scheduled to feature teams such as SunRisers Hyderabad, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi Capitals, and Rajasthan Royals.
- It is unclear which non-IPL teams will show up, but Cricbuzz has already confirmed that the following organizations have taken the ITT: Shriram Group, Nilgiri Group, AW Katkuri Group, APL Apollo, Haldiram, Chettinad Cement, JK Cement, Capri Global. It is speculated that the Naman Group and Uday Kotak have also signed on.
- The BCCI normally accepts both technical and financial bids on the same day, but after the CVC experience, which necessitated extensive due diligence on the part of the board, they have decided to hold the two types of bids on different days. The BCCI prefers a closed procedure, therefore they want to make sure everything checks out before starting the bidding on the finances.
