Report Says The Inaugural Edition Of Women IPL To Be Held On March 2023

The good news for IPL fans is the most-awaited Women’s Indian Premier League (WIPL) tournament is slated to begin on March 2023, a senior BCCI official confirmed it on Friday

The much-awaited Women’s IPL will commence from March 2023 to be held in a one-month window and all likelihood with five teams. The BCCI has been discussing the issue for quite some time and a March window has been found for the tournament after the Women’s T20 World Cup in South Africa.

“Yes, the WIPL will start in the first week of March and we have earmarked a four-week window for the first year. The T20 World Cup in South Africa is from February 9 to 26 and immediately after that we plan to hold the WIPL,” a senior BCCI official told PTI.

“As of now, we are going ahead with five teams but it could be six as there is a lot of interest among potential investors. In due course of time, the process of auctioning of teams will be announced,” he added.

Both BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah in separate interviews with PTI had earlier confirmed that 2023 is the year when the country will experience something revolutionary: The women’s Indian Premier League.

Ganguly has expressed his confidence about the start of the WIPL in 2023.

“I strongly believe that next year i.e. 2023 will be a very good time to start a full-fledged women’s IPL which will be as big and grand a success as men’s IPL.”

With this extension of WIPL, the zest for women’s cricket in India is at an unprecedented height. Several senior players, including Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana, have been vocal in their support for the league. Previously, former India captain Mithali Raj, too, expressed a desire to come out of retirement to play in the tournament.

“I’m keeping that option open,” she said while speaking on the ICC’s 100% Cricket podcast. “I’ve not yet decided. There are a few more months to go before the Women’s IPL happens. It would be lovely to be part of the first edition of the Women’s IPL.”