The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah has confirmed that WPL 2024 will not be played in a multi-city format and that all matches will be held in a single city.
The WPL 2024 will be the second edition of the women’s T20 league organized by the BCCI and it was reported that the league will be played across multiple cities in 2024, unlike the inaugural season which was held across three venues in Mumbai.
However, Jay Shah has confirmed that WPL 2024 will follow the same format as WPL 2023 and will be held entirely in one city for logistical reasons.
“Logistics are important and that is why we will hold all the matches in one state,” Shah said, as quoted by News18.
“It is a joint call between the franchises and the BCCI so the moment we sit together we will decide,” he explained.
“In future, it could be held in states like UP or Gujarat. Maybe in a few years the teams can have their own stadiums. We will inform you as soon as we decide, but it will surely be in the same state.”
Jay Shah also revealed that the second season of the Women’s Premier League will likely begin in the second or third week of February.
“We will most likely start the second WPL season in the second or third week of February.”
“As you know, 74 matches are played in IPL, we will start it in the last week of March and the final will be played in the last week of May or the first week of June,” he said.
WPL 2024: That says a lot about success: Jay Shah on Uncapped Indians getting huge WPL contracts
The WPL 2024 auction took place on December 9 and two of the most expensive players that were signed by the teams were the Unlimited Indians. Kashvee Gautam was bought by Gujarat Giants for INR 2 crore and Vrinda Dinesh was bought by UP Warriorz for INR 1.3 crore. Talking about this, Jay Shah said:
“As you have witnessed today, two uncapped Indian players bet for huge sums and that speaks volumes about the success of the arrival.”
Jay Shah further spoke about India hosting the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 and said that they will treat it with the same respect and integrity as the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023.
“Just as we do not differentiate between the WPL and the IPL, we will not differentiate between the men’s and women’s World Cup. We will treat them with the same respect,” Shah said.
Returning to the WPL 2024 auction, a total of 30 players were sold during the event, of which 9 were foreign players. Annabel Sutherland and Kashvee Gautam were the most expensive players in the auction as they were bought for INR 2 crore.
