Cricket News: The application deadline is January 26; the first auction for the women's IPL will take place in February

The five teams in the BCCI-led women's T20 franchise competition, organised on the lines of IPL, will be called the Women's T20 League and will be selected through a player auction in February. 

Indian participants must register for the auction by 5 pm on January 26 IST. The event replaces the

The five teams in the BCCI-led women's T20 franchise competition, organised on the lines of IPL, will be called the Women's T20 League and will be selected through a player auction in February. 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🚨 Women&#39;s IPL update 🚨<br><br>Major interest in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WomensIPL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WomensIPL</a> Media rights 🙌<br><br>Who do you think will get it?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WIPL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WIPL</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CricketTwitter?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CricketTwitter</a> <a href="https://t.co/mMn4lFgFU9">pic.twitter.com/mMn4lFgFU9</a></p>&mdash; Women’s CricZone (@WomensCricZone) <a href="https://twitter.com/WomensCricZone/status/1610182187957223424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Indian participants must register for the auction by 5 pm on January 26 IST. The event replaces the Women's T20 Challenge, which was launched as a one-off two-team tournament in 2018 before becoming a three-team exhibition tournament in 2019 and seeing two more editions in 2020 and 2022. 

The base price, also called the "reserve price', is set at INR 30 lakh, INR 40 lakh and INR 50 lakh for Indian players whose salaries are capped and INR 10 lakh and INR 20 lakh for players with no salary cap.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Squads for the inaugural season of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WomensIPL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WomensIPL</a> will be picked via a player auction held in February.<br><br>For capped players, there are 3 categories - INR 50 lakh, INR 40 lakh &amp; INR 30 lakh. Similarly, uncapped domestic players can register at INR 10 or INR 20 lakh.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CricketTwitter?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CricketTwitter</a> <a href="https://t.co/atMKS1A92f">pic.twitter.com/atMKS1A92f</a></p>&mdash; The Bridge (@the_bridge_in) <a href="https://twitter.com/the_bridge_in/status/1611700944160559105?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

For the T20 women's league, players must register directly with their respective national associations rather than through agents or managers. 

According to Sourav Ganguly, former president of the BCCI, who made the statement in February last year, the women's league IPL will begin in 2023. 

The BCCI set a March window in August. To accommodate the franchise event, the BCCI shifted the domestic women's calendar, which usually runs from November to April. 

Since the official announcement of the WIPL, several men's clubs have IPL sent out talent scouts to find players they could sign for the women's competition, should they get the privilege of owning a franchise.

Rajasthan Royals, Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Punjab Kings are all believed to be interested in owning a team in the competition.

Since India's runners-up finish in the 2017 ODI World Cup, there have been increasing calls for introducing the women's championship IPL. 

The idea gained traction when India reached Australia's finals of the 2020 T20 World Cup, but Covid-19 eventually halted women's cricket and the sport.

The BCCI requested bids for the planned five-team tournament's media rights last month from 2023 to 27.