Indian Premier League : What is this league
The Indian Premier League (IPL), also known as the TATA IPL for sponsorship reasons, is a men’s Twenty20 (T20) cricket league held annually in India. Founded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2007, the league features ten state or city-based franchise teams. It is the most popular and biggest cricket league in the world, typically taking place during the summer for two months, between March and May each year. The IPL has an exclusive window in the ICC Future Tours Programme, which results in fewer international cricket tours occurring during the IPL seasons.
In 2010, the IPL became the first sporting event to be broadcast live on YouTube, and in 2014, it ranked sixth in average attendance among all sports leagues. The success of the this league has inspired the establishment of other Indian sports leagues. In 2022, the league’s brand value was estimated at ₹90,038 crore (US$11 billion).
According to the BCCI, the 2015 Indian premier league season contributed ₹1,150 crore (US$140 million) to India’s GDP. In December 2022, the IPL achieved a valuation of US$10.9 billion, becoming a decacorn and registering a 75% growth in dollar terms since 2020, when it was valued at $6.2 billion. The 2023 final became the most streamed live event on the internet, with 32 million viewers.
In 2023, the league sold its media rights for the next four seasons for US$6.4 billion to Viacom18 and Star Sports, meaning each IPL match was valued at $13.4 million. As of 2024, there have been seventeen seasons of the tournament. The current champions are the Kolkata Knight Riders, who won the 2024 season after defeating the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the final.
IPL History: Going through IPL from the beginning
In 2007, Zee Entertainment Enterprises launched the Indian Cricket League (ICL), which was not recognized by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) or the International Cricket Council (ICC). The BCCI, displeased with its members joining the ICL’s executive board, responded by increasing the prize money for its domestic tournaments and imposing lifetime bans on players who participated in the ICL, branding it as a “rebel league.” As a result of these challenges, the ICL eventually shut down in 2009.
On 13 September 2007, shortly after India’s victory in the 2007 T20 World Cup, the BCCI announced the creation of a franchise-based Twenty20 cricket competition known as the Indian Premier League (IPL). Spearheaded by BCCI Vice-president Lalit Modi, the league was designed to include a high-profile opening ceremony and an auction system for franchise ownership. The IPL was to be managed by a seven-man governing council and would also serve as a qualifier for the Champions League Twenty20. The inaugural season of the IPL was scheduled to begin in April 2008.
On 24 January 2008, an auction was held to determine the ownership of the eight franchises, raising $723.59 million, significantly more than the reserve price of $400 million. The original teams included Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Mumbai Indians (MI), Delhi Daredevils (DD), Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), Deccan Chargers (DC), Rajasthan Royals (RR), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). The IPL officially commenced in April 2008.
Expansions and Challenges
The IPL expanded in 2011 with the addition of two new franchises, Pune Warriors India and Kochi Tuskers Kerala. The Sahara Adventure Sports Group purchased the Pune franchise for $370 million, and Rendezvous Sports World bought the Kochi franchise for $333.3 million. However, the Kochi franchise was terminated after just one season due to financial issues with the BCCI.
In September 2012, the Deccan Chargers franchise was terminated, and Sun TV Network acquired the replacement Hyderabad franchise, which was renamed Sunrisers Hyderabad. Pune Warriors India withdrew from the IPL in May 2013 due to financial disputes with the BCCI, leading to the franchise’s official termination in October and reducing the league back to eight teams.
In June 2015, Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals were suspended for two seasons due to their involvement in a spot-fixing and betting scandal. They were temporarily replaced by franchises based in Pune and Rajkot.
Recent Developments
The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 forced the IPL to relocate its season to the United Arab Emirates. In August 2021, the BCCI announced the addition of two new franchises for the 2022 season, following a closed bidding process in which RPSG Group and CVC Capital won the rights to the new teams, paying ₹7,000 crore (US$840 million) and ₹5,200 crore (US$620 million), respectively. These teams were named Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans.
In recent years, IPL franchise owners have expanded their operations by acquiring teams in other franchise leagues, such as the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), South Africa’s SA20, the UAE’s International League T20 (ILT20), and the USA’s Major League Cricket (MLC), often branding these teams with names similar to their IPL franchises.
Most legendary Teams in IPL: Most Legendary Sports leagues in the World
Overview of the Indian Premier League (IPL)
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a men’s Twenty20 (T20) cricket competition organized by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the national governing body of cricket in India. T20 cricket is a shorter format of the game, with each team playing a single innings of 20 overs. The inaugural season of the IPL was held in 2008, and the tournament has been held annually in India ever since. Currently, ten teams compete for the championship.
Championship Titles and Records
Since the league’s inception, seven teams have won the title, with the Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) both securing five titles each. Indian cricketer MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma hold the record for the most titles as captains, each leading their respective teams to five championships. Dhoni also holds the record for the most matches played in the league.
Notable Player Records
- Virat Kohli: The Indian batsman holds the records for the most runs scored (8,004) and the most centuries made (8) in the IPL.
- Chris Gayle: The West Indies batsman holds several individual batting records, including the highest individual score in a match (175*), the most sixes scored (357), the most sixes in a match (17), and the fastest century (off 30 balls).
- Yuzvendra Chahal: The Indian bowler holds the record for the most wickets taken (205).
- Alzarri Joseph: The West Indies bowler holds the record for the best bowling figures in a match, with 6/12.
Team Achievements
- Mumbai Indians: MI holds the record for playing and winning the most matches in the IPL.
- Gujarat Titans (GT): GT boasts the highest win percentage (62.22%) in the league.
- Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH): SRH set the record for the most runs scored in a match with a total of 287/3 against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2024, breaking their own previous record of 277/3 against the Mumbai Indians earlier in the same season.
- Punjab Kings (PBKS): PBKS achieved the highest successful run chase in IPL history, chasing down a target of 262 set by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2024.
- Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB): RCB holds the unfortunate record of the lowest total in the league, scoring just 49 runs against Kolkata Knight Riders in 2017.
