The Indian Premier League is already huge but it might get even bigger in the future. As per a report by ESPNcricinfo, the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the International Cricket Council are talking about increasing the number of matches in the tournament.
Maybe soon, fans will get to enjoy a whopping 94 matches in one season. IPL chairman Arun Dhumal spoke about this plan as he claimed that changes could happen by 2028. Nothing is final as of now but the idea is being seriously looked at.
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Will IPL have 94 matches in a season?
As per IPL chairman Arun Dhumal, the thinking is simple. They want every team to play with each other on a home and away basis.
Dhumal said the discussions are happening inside the BCCI and also with the ICC because such a big change in India's domestic competition would have a significant impact on the overall international calendar.
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"Definitely, that might be an opportunity," Dhumal said. "We've been discussing in ICC, we've been discussing in-house in BCCI," said the IPL chief to ESPNCricinfo.
He further explained that fans are showing more love towards T20 leagues like IPL than normal bilateral cricket, so it makes sense to explore this expansion idea properly.
"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.
"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," Dhumal added.
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Players are already busy with Test matches, ICC events and franchise leagues. So, for now, they will wait and when the time looks right, they will think again about taking the final step towards 94 matches.
"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 to go from 74 to 84 [in 2025], but whenever we think that the time is opportune, we'll take that call," the BCCI official said.
Why is cricket moving towards franchise leagues?
Franchise cricket is becoming bigger every year and fans seem to enjoy it more than long series. Dhumal said because the world of cricket is changing fast, IPL also has to change and move with the time.
"Every year, it's been growing," Dhumal said. "We are very glad how the fans have loved this tournament, and the broadcast numbers and in-stadia numbers are all phenomenal. We are hoping to carry on with this being a special edition, the 18th edition. We are very sure that it'll continue to grow in the way we've seen over the last 17 years," he added.