Chaos is reigning within the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
The Justice Lodha panel report has come in as a typhoon, completely shaking up Indian cricket and sending officials in a tizzy. Questions abound everywhere, but answers don’t seem too forthcoming. The biggest questions obviously are related to the BCCI’s flagship tournament: the Indian Premier League. What happens to the IPL now? What happens to the Chennai and Jaipur franchises?
The IPL’s governing council will be meeting on Sunday to figure out a way out. Things look murky but here’s a look at some potential scenarios that that could conceivably be seen in future editions of the IPL.
Scenario 1: A six-team IPL
This would be the easiest way out for the BCCI but also the unlikeliest. Since the holding companies of the suspended teams India Cements and Jaipur IPL, have been banned for two years, the BCCI would keep them out of the league for the next two editions, allow them to keep their players and welcome them back after the suspension has passed.
But that looks unlikely even if Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals don’t mind paying player fees for the next two years. First of all, no CSK or Rajasthan player would want to opt out of the IPL for two years if they had the choice. You'd also wonder whether they’d be willing to continue with a tainted franchise.
Even more importantly, it‘s not viable for the BCCI financially. The original agreements between all the franchises were based on a six-week season involving eight teams. Stripping it down to only six teams would involve renegotiating all major agreements and would definitely lead to a loss of revenue. Also, there would be a significant loss of face for the BCCI – they’d be perceived to have not taken any action at all.
Scenario 2: An eight-team IPL, with two new franchises to replace CSK and Rajasthan
A more probable scenario but one which has its own share of problems. The BCCI can call for a separate auction to get two new franchises to replace CSK and Rajasthan but will there be any takers? The taint of corruption around the entire tournament has scared off many potential suitors – the Jindal Group, which were rumoured to be interested earlier, put out a statement saying they weren’t interested anymore, due to the “negative aura surrounding the IPL”.
And even if potential bidders do step up, there will be financial implications. The valuation of any new franchise in the IPL would be extremely low, far lower than the amounts some of the original owners have paid for their franchises. The original team-owners wouldn’t look too kindly upon having had to pay such massive sums of money for the last eight years only to see someone come in at a much lower entry cost .
An eight-team event with two new franchises will raise other problems – the current contracts are valid for only two more years, which could complicate things further.
Scenario 3: A eight-team IPL, expanded to ten teams after two years
This proposal comes from former BCCI president Inderjit Bindra who suggested that two new teams be included now and, two years later, the tournament expand to ten teams, which was the original plan of the BCCI.
This would give CSK and Rajasthan some breathing space for two years, get two other franchises in their place, and, when the suspension is up, allow the teams to rejoin the IPL.
The BCCI did have ten franchises participating in the IPL when Pune and Kochi were part of the tournament, but it didn’t turn out too well and led to its own problems. It would also mean changing the revenue structure to accommodate a ten team IPL again after two years, and at such a shaky juncture, the BCCI may not want to go down that route again. Besides, there’ll still be the big decision on what to do with CSK and Rajasthan’s players.
Scenario 4: Auction off all of CSK and Rajasthan’s players and terminate their franchises for good
Probably the cleanest decision the BCCI could take, but the hardest. Firstly, India Cements has already indicated that they’re going to move the Supreme Court against CSK’s suspension, so expect them to fight tooth and nail against any effort to terminate their franchise. Keep in mind also that Srinivasan might not be BCCI President, but as chairman of the ICC, he still enjoys tremendous heft.
Then, consider the players. Take Dhoni, who's become synonymous with Chennai Super Kings to the point where a franchise owner says, “Tendulkar was for India what Dhoni is for Super Kings.” The prospect of these players playing for another franchise is going to be difficult for fans to wrap their heads around.
Finally, what salary do you pay them? As The Hindustan Times points out, it's not known how much MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina or Dwayne Bravo get paid by the CSK. How do you set a base price for these players?
The BCCI has a lot on its plate and it’ll be interesting to see how they tackle it all in Sunday’s meeting. But one thing’s for sure, Indian cricket is going through tumultuous times. Keep your eye on the ball.
We welcome your comments at
letters@scroll.in.
The Justice Lodha panel report has come in as a typhoon, completely shaking up Indian cricket and sending officials in a tizzy. Questions abound everywhere, but answers don’t seem too forthcoming. The biggest questions obviously are related to the BCCI’s flagship tournament: the Indian Premier League. What happens to the IPL now? What happens to the Chennai and Jaipur franchises?
The IPL’s governing council will be meeting on Sunday to figure out a way out. Things look murky but here’s a look at some potential scenarios that that could conceivably be seen in future editions of the IPL.
Scenario 1: A six-team IPL
This would be the easiest way out for the BCCI but also the unlikeliest. Since the holding companies of the suspended teams India Cements and Jaipur IPL, have been banned for two years, the BCCI would keep them out of the league for the next two editions, allow them to keep their players and welcome them back after the suspension has passed.
But that looks unlikely even if Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals don’t mind paying player fees for the next two years. First of all, no CSK or Rajasthan player would want to opt out of the IPL for two years if they had the choice. You'd also wonder whether they’d be willing to continue with a tainted franchise.
Even more importantly, it‘s not viable for the BCCI financially. The original agreements between all the franchises were based on a six-week season involving eight teams. Stripping it down to only six teams would involve renegotiating all major agreements and would definitely lead to a loss of revenue. Also, there would be a significant loss of face for the BCCI – they’d be perceived to have not taken any action at all.
Scenario 2: An eight-team IPL, with two new franchises to replace CSK and Rajasthan
A more probable scenario but one which has its own share of problems. The BCCI can call for a separate auction to get two new franchises to replace CSK and Rajasthan but will there be any takers? The taint of corruption around the entire tournament has scared off many potential suitors – the Jindal Group, which were rumoured to be interested earlier, put out a statement saying they weren’t interested anymore, due to the “negative aura surrounding the IPL”.
And even if potential bidders do step up, there will be financial implications. The valuation of any new franchise in the IPL would be extremely low, far lower than the amounts some of the original owners have paid for their franchises. The original team-owners wouldn’t look too kindly upon having had to pay such massive sums of money for the last eight years only to see someone come in at a much lower entry cost .
An eight-team event with two new franchises will raise other problems – the current contracts are valid for only two more years, which could complicate things further.
Scenario 3: A eight-team IPL, expanded to ten teams after two years
This proposal comes from former BCCI president Inderjit Bindra who suggested that two new teams be included now and, two years later, the tournament expand to ten teams, which was the original plan of the BCCI.
This would give CSK and Rajasthan some breathing space for two years, get two other franchises in their place, and, when the suspension is up, allow the teams to rejoin the IPL.
The BCCI did have ten franchises participating in the IPL when Pune and Kochi were part of the tournament, but it didn’t turn out too well and led to its own problems. It would also mean changing the revenue structure to accommodate a ten team IPL again after two years, and at such a shaky juncture, the BCCI may not want to go down that route again. Besides, there’ll still be the big decision on what to do with CSK and Rajasthan’s players.
Scenario 4: Auction off all of CSK and Rajasthan’s players and terminate their franchises for good
Probably the cleanest decision the BCCI could take, but the hardest. Firstly, India Cements has already indicated that they’re going to move the Supreme Court against CSK’s suspension, so expect them to fight tooth and nail against any effort to terminate their franchise. Keep in mind also that Srinivasan might not be BCCI President, but as chairman of the ICC, he still enjoys tremendous heft.
Then, consider the players. Take Dhoni, who's become synonymous with Chennai Super Kings to the point where a franchise owner says, “Tendulkar was for India what Dhoni is for Super Kings.” The prospect of these players playing for another franchise is going to be difficult for fans to wrap their heads around.
Finally, what salary do you pay them? As The Hindustan Times points out, it's not known how much MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina or Dwayne Bravo get paid by the CSK. How do you set a base price for these players?
The BCCI has a lot on its plate and it’ll be interesting to see how they tackle it all in Sunday’s meeting. But one thing’s for sure, Indian cricket is going through tumultuous times. Keep your eye on the ball.
