Former Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner Lalit Modi gave his honest thoughts on the league’s overall growth.
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Modi on IPL growth
Modi said the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has done a “fantastic job” in bringing the league to newer cities and markets.
“The IPL has grown to be the world’s best sports league and has a valuation second to none, and one has to say the BCCI has done a fantastic job with it,” aid Modi on Backstage with Boria on Revsportz. “The new group in the BCCI that is running the show now has it right. They have taken games to newer cities and markets and opened up the entire country to the IPL.”
“That is how you bring in newer constituencies of people within the fold of the tournament and it has been great to see them do that. When I sit here in Austria and see fans from across the country get behind the tournament, I have to say I am thrilled and a lot of credit must go to the BCCI for taking the tournament ahead and making it bigger and better,” he added.
Lack of innovation
However, Modi noted that the league needs to be more innovation on the part of team owners for merchandising.
He also said the league also needs to improve their ticketing system.
“Innovation not so much from the BCCI but more from the team owners. Now most teams have a strong fan base. And yet, merchandising has not really taken off. I would want to see the team owners come together and work on merchandising. It is an opportunity lost. They should open a centralised IPL store and take the story forward. Even ticketing is something the team owners can improve on. Rather than doing their own things, they should do things collectively.”
“For the BCCI, may be they should now think of a secondary league in tier two or tier three cities. That is where the appetite is, and that is where you should take the tournament. Use the September-October window earmarked for the Champions League for this. Maybe even think if the winner can be promoted to the IPL for the next season. That’s where the BCCI can go with the tournament the next few years,” he added.
Nonetheless, Lalit is happy to see the league expanding the tournament and taking the tournament to cities that “were earlier untapped”.
Also, Lalit is happy to see more star power in local talents over foreign players.
