There is a lot of buzz surrounding The IPL Mega auctions. Right since the announcement of two new IPL teams, the competition has assumed great significance. The two new franchises have gone for insane bids. RPSG group bought the Lucknow team for a record INR 7000+ crores. CVC group on the other hand bought the Ahmedabad franchise for INR 5625 crores.
The preparedness:
RPSG group is no novice to The IPL. They previously owned the Rising Pune Supergiant from 2016-17. The Lucknow franchise has already made the right noises leading into this season. They have already appointed their coaching staff. Lucknow looks ready for the upcoming season. But the same can’t be said about the Ahmedabad franchise. It is mainly to do with the CVC group, An American company that acquired the franchise.
The legalities:
BCCI, the parent body of The IPL surprisingly has maintained an eerie silence on this issue. There is an ongoing legal marathon featuring both parties. Legal personnel from both sides are engaging in multiple conversations. But there is hope among their close circles that they are able to find a suitable and lawful agreement. As the drafting of the Ahmedabad franchise is entirely dependent on this issue.
Why the delay?
The delay in proceedings is mainly because of the efforts involving legal experts. As they are in the process of finding the right wordings for fine-tuning the agreement. Parallel to this, it is observed that a broad consensus is said to have been reached. Even though there is an acknowledgment from everyone involved that this process is taking a lot more time than anyone envisioned. But it is believed that the delay is unavoidable.
What are the repercussions of this delay?
This legal delay is bound to upset the applecart of The IPL 15 timeline. Sources close to the development note that the BCCI is already preparing for this impending issue. The immediate impact might be seen on the mega auctions.
They were initially supposed to take place on February 12-13. But the new teams, Lucknow and Ahmedabad will need a minimum of 15 days to prepare for the auctions. So it all boils down to the CVC issue settling down. The BCCI is hoping that the auctions happen as on the scheduled date. It is learnt that the final auction date will be announced post the CVC agreement is signed.
Is there a Plan B in store?
BCCI meanwhile is preparing a Plan B at this stage. In the wake of rising covid cases, there is a possibility that the BCCI might use just Mumbai as an IPL venue. There are two options that are being explored. Either play at 10 centers or just three centers (the Wankhede, CCI, and DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai).
There is not a lot of talk about scheduling the league in the UAE as of now. But there is a possibility of the league being advanced from April 2 to March 25. The ball as always lies in BCCI’s court.
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