If you are a fan of free markets and open economy along with a true die hard sports spirit; you would want the ICL & IPL to co exist. If the BCCI recognizes ICL as a second division league then that means you get more out of the T20 format of the game. All the players (just retired and domestic talents) will have better earning potential and Lalit Modi will get what he wants- a larger window for the T20 league concept. All that the Moses of cricket needs to do is be magnanimous and recognize ICL as the second division. It may cause him a few initial hiccups. ICL as second division means that the top two teams from ICL will replace the bottom two in the IPL in the next years’ IPL. This may not go down well with the existing IPL franchisees, who in the present format are cushioned. Performance plays no role in the success or the brand equity of the team. This has also been the IPL’s biggest critic that cricket and performance are taking a backseat on its platform.
BCCI could monetize the game further by garnering broadcast fees for both IPL and ICL. Zee would broadcast the ICL and BCCI can get a cut out of it. Maybe a few IPL franchisees may resist such a move, but they can be shown the door and new ones roped in. Like every other business industry some parties will object to safeguard their vested interests ,but like a government .BCCI needs to concentrate on the larger picture and see the benefit of the proposed move.
Players will get to earn more and BCCI and Lalit can increase their revenue streams by only stamping approval with the pending ICL case. If approved all nine ICL teams will get ready sponsors – at the present rates ICL makes an attractive investment proposition for prospective franchisees, provided the approval is got. The amount that BCCI can get for nine teams in a second division is best left to your judgment. So, why the BCCI should look at the ICL approval route for growth of league T20 cricket? The answer lies in the following two facts; first the only way the IPL can grow with the present international calendar and window restrictions is by making ICL its second division & secondly tap of the impressive resource pool at the disposal of the ICL.
The IPL and BCCI can increase their revenue by the following way:
They can have 9 ready made teams, some with international flavor like the Lahore Badshahs & Dhaka Warriors to earn franchisee fees.
Charge Zee & ICL as broadcaster and league operators a license amount in return of recognition.
More player transfer fees as larger talent pool will result in more selling and buying where a transaction fee can be charged by the IPL board. (Rumors have it that ICL talents like R Sathish, Vignesh, Rayudu & Abhishek Jhunjhunwala are being offered over 1.5 crore deals from IPL franchisees- a percentage of same can be taken by IPL/BCCI if ICL is recognized and player transfer take place like they do in the European soccer circuit)
Finally the above makes sense for a simple reason. The talent pool in the world and especially India is so big that the IPL today faces an embarrassment of riches. Players of the likes of Collingwood, McGrath, Nitini, Vettori are warming benches. It shows that as a global tournament IPL is too small to accommodate the talent pool. Secondly if the IPL adds two more teams in its franchisee list it means at least another 14 matches to the present calendar which may not be possible. It already has a problem with accommodating its present month and half tournament so how will it accommodate more teams and more matches.
So if you are a T20 fan and want the league concept to grow further then the easiest way to achieve this would be to get the ICL as a second division league.
