BCCI-IPL owners meeting | Franchisees divided over mega auction

BCCI and IPL officials discuss player retentions, auction purse, and mega auction at annual meeting with franchisees.

The annual meeting between the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officials and the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Wednesday franchisee was expected to exchange views on player retentions, use of right to match cards, auction purse and the impact player rule.

However, the meeting took an interesting turn when at least two franchisees sought doing away with the mega auction, or at least postponing it by a year. The Hindu understands that three team owners were at the forefront of having a smaller auction — meaning optimum player retentions — rather than forcing a major makeover in all the squads.

“We do not want the mega auction this year — we would prefer a mini-auction this year. It takes a lot of time to build a squad and takes quite a bit of time and investment for the younger players to mature,” Kavya Maran of Sunrisers Hyderabad said after the meeting. “For example, it has taken Abhishek Sharma three years to become consistent with his performances. You would agree that there are many such examples in other teams too.”

The suggestion came as a surprise to most in the enclosure and led to a prolonged debated between two team owners. “I was surprised (with the debate). Some didn’t want big auctions, stating there should be only smaller auctions,” Parth Jindal, the Delhi Capitals co-owner, said.

“I am not in that camp, as it (mega auction) evens out the playing field. It makes the IPL competitive. It makes the IPL what it is. It makes it competitive.”

Referring to the meeting as a “constructive dialogue”, BCCI secretary Jay Shah said the owners’ feedback will be considered while finalising player regulations.

“The franchise owners tabled feedback on player regulations and other commercial aspects, including central merchandising, licensing, and gaming. The BCCI will now take these recommendations to the IPL Governing Council for further deliberation and evaluation before formulating the IPL player regulations,” Shah said in a statement.