Srinagar: The cash rich Indian Premier League (IPL) is going to get big and better with the passage of time , with plans set in motion to have almost 100 matches per season the new format from the year 2028.
There are plans to expand the T20 tournament to 94 matches each season from 2028. IPL already expanded to 74 games each season in 2022 when two more teams were included—Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants.
IPL chairman Arun Dhumal confirmed to ESPNCricinfo that the BCCI is looking to have a bigger IPL season starting in 2028, and the discussions are already underway with the International Cricket Council (ICC).
“Definitely, that might be an opportunity. We’ve been discussing in ICC, we’ve been discussing in-house in BCCI. Given how the interest of the fan is changing with regard to bilateral and ICC events, in regard to franchise cricket and T20 cricket, we’ll have to talk more seriously about it and see how we can create maximum value for the stakeholders of the game,” Dhumal told ESPNCricinfo.
“Ideally, we’d want a larger window, or to maybe go on from 74 to 84 or 94 at some point… So that every team gets to play against every team home and away, for that, you need 94 games. Given the window and the kind of commitments that we have with regards to bilateral cricket and ICC events, that may not be possible in the short term. But given the landscape, how it is changing and evolving over the years, maybe at some point in time we would look and take that option,” he added.
The IPL chairman also explained why the governing council did not want to have an 84-game IPL season in 2025, saying, “There’s been so much cricket: we came back from Australia from a Test series, we had this Champions Trophy, and on top of that we have this IPL. That is why it was decided that it doesn’t make sense from going from 74 to 84 [in 2025], but whenever we think that the time is opportune, we’ll take that call.”