Women's IPL Teams, Schedule, Start Date, and All Details

The much-awaited women’s Indian Premier League (IPL) is likely to kickstart in March 2023. The Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) is planning to execute the five-team tournament right after the end of the upcoming women’s T20 World Cup. And the T20 WC will be played in South Africa in February 2023.

Women’s IPL Teams, Schedule, Start Date, and All Details

The BCCI has proposed the plan to the Annual General Meeting (AGM), which includes 22 matches. Each squad will comprise 18 players with a maximum of six overseas signings. However, unlike the men’s tournament, the starting XI will feature a maximum of five overseas players; four from the ICC’s full member nations, and one from an associate nation.

The BCCI has sent the plan to the state associations too, according to which, teams will play each other twice and there will be 20 league-stage games. The table topper will directly qualify for the final, while the second and third teams will have to play the eliminator.

Women’s IPL: When will WIPL start?

Talking about the schedule, the BCCI is prone to terminate the women’s IPL before the men’s. As the men’s event may take place by the end of March 2023.

Deeming the women’s FTP and the BCCI’s paper on the matter, there are ‘clear 25 days Women’s IPL window in the FTP cycle’. However, the inaugural women’s IPL is likely to clash with the inaugural women’s Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Furthermore, the BCCI sent the same paper on women’s IPL to the state associations considering the agenda of the Indian cricket’s apex council in the upcoming AGM, which is to happen on October 18 (Monday). The paper read, “It will be a challenge to play the WIPL in the home and away format, because with five to six teams it is not possible to have a match every day.”

“It is suggested that the tournament can be played in caravan style, where after finishing ten matches at one venue, the next ten matches to be played at the next venue. Therefore, ten matches each to be played across two venues in the 2023 WIPL season, ten each in the next two venues in the 2024 season, and for the 2025 season ten matches in the remaining one venue and the remaining ten in one of the venues from 2023 season.” the BCCI added.

Women’s IPL: The teams

The BCCI will sell five franchises. Although, unlike the men’s event, the BCCI has put forward two ways for the team formations. The first one includes trading teams six across the country. A set of the zone that may be considered is: Dharamsala/Jammu (North zone), Pune/Rajkot (West), Indore/Nagpur/Raipur (Central), Ranchi/Cuttak (East), Kochi/Visakhapatnam (South) and Guwahati (North-East).

The second option involves teams being bided without a solid home base, with matches being played at six different venues. And the venues are: Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai.
The BCCI authorities will represent the women’s IPL paper at the AGM. However, the final decision will be taken by the IPL Governing Council chairman. And the chairman will be decided in the same AGM – in discussions with the BCCI officials.

Women’s IPL: ‘Due to prominent performances by the Indian Senior Cricket team,’ the reason behind the WIPL

Considering the last few years, the Indian women’s cricket team has achieved some things that were lacking. It all started after the women’s Cricket World Cup 2017 final in and against England. The Mithali Raj-led women lost the final then but went on to attain the glamour they deserved. The side’s first remarkable, mostly seen success was followed by the 2020 T20 World Cup final in Australia. The 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games medal was the best of the side.

Regarding the same, the BCCI paper said, “With the rise in popularity of women’s cricket in the country mainly due to prominent performances by the Indian Senior Cricket team on world stage by qualifying for semi-finals in 2018 T20 World Cup, finals in 2020 T20 World Cup, securing silver medal in recently held 2022 Commonwealth games in Birmingham, we intend to conduct the Women’s IPL on similar lines with the Indian Premier League.”

The BCCI started the Women’s T20 Challenge including two teams in 2018 which was extended to three teams in 2019. After the players asked for a revolution, the BCCI had to move forward in that direction. The board had also complained about the relatively smaller player pools within the country but the gradual increase in the participation of women in the sport let those concerns down.
The paper stated the 111% increase in the participation of players from 2014 to 2022. There was a 129% increase in part-taking in the senior women’s category. While a 92% increase in Under-19 was seen, during the same period.

Women’s IPL: The BCCI has studied women’s Hundred and WBBL models

The women’s IPL will now join the significant list of a few best women’s tournaments across the globe. The few bests are women’s Hundred, women’s BBL, women’s CPL, FairBreak Invitational, and scheduled women’s PSL in a calendar year.

Also, the BCCI’s paper noted that there were a few studies done on the models of women’s Hundred and WBBL. And finally, as things are getting together, India awaits the charm of women’s IPL.

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