Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Sehwag could get their own IPL for legends after ex-cricketers approach Jay Shah: Report
With the never-before-seen success of the IPL and the gaining popularity if the Women’s Premier League, the BCCI could come up with a third league tournament of its own catering to retired cricketers.
As per a report in the Dainik Jagran, the board could be mulling the possibility of a Legends Premier League, specifically catering to former cricketers around the world after certain ex-India cricketers reached out to the board secretary Jay Shah. While it may not come to a fruition right away, the BCCI is open to think it through and hopefully, come up with the concept as early as next year.
There is no shortage of legends leagues in the world. The Road Safety World Series, Legends League Cricket, World Championship of Legends and the Global Legends League being some of the more prominent leagues. These leagues mainly cater to cricketers who have been retired for some time. However, if the BCCI successfully launches its own league, it will mark the first-ever legends tournament organised by a cricket board, as most existing series are owned by private companies. If implemented, this league could feature the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Virender Sehwag, Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers to name a few.
Tendulkar captained India Legends to a win in the first two editions of the Road Safety World Series, whereas under Yuvraj, the Indian team lifted the recently-concluded World Championship of Legends trophy in England, the tournament helped organized by the England and Wales Cricket Board. Yuvraj’s team comprised several teammates from the historic 2007 and 2011 T20 World Cup winning teammates such as Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan, Suresh Raina, Yusuf Pathan, Robin Uthappa and more.
Similarities with IPL
It is believed that if the BCCI can pull this off, the monopoly will once again tilt towards this league. The IPL is still the crème de la creme when it comes to T20 leagues across the world and with the kind of money, investment and the star power involved, BCCI’s next big project could endanger the future of all the other leagues centered around legends in the world. Given the age and the physical restrictions, the likelihood of retired cricketers playing more than one league a year is a bare minimum.
If the proposal proceeds as planned, this legends league will adopt a format similar to the IPL. Teams will be organised based on cities, and matches played in home and away formats with different franchises owned by various stakeholders. Like in the IPL and WPL, an auction will be held where a select group of players will be available for bidding. However, much like the inaugural IPL, certain players, such as Tendulkar and Yuvraj, might be designated as marquee players, focusing on those who have retired more recently. Players like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma won’t be eligible as they are still active in ODIs and Tests. The league will be exclusively for cricketers who have retired from all forms of the game.