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One of the biggest talking points going into the 89thAnnual General Meeting (AGM) of the BCCI in Ahmedabad was the expansion of the IPL to ten teams from the current eight. BCCI President Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah chaired the meeting and ratified some important decisions apart from the much hyped expansion of the number of teams in IPL.

So, the IPL in 2022 is all set to be a ten-team strong mega event.

With the brand value of IPL going through the roofs, the further expansion is only a viable move on the part of BCCI. But, with the ICC WT20 slated to be held every year till the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup, will that provide the Indian players enough rest to be at their best at the global ICC tournaments?

The increase in the number of teams will mean more number of group stage matches that the Indian players will play in their bid to qualify for the play offs. The repercussions of the same can be felt only after the tournament gets over and one will clearly get to know whether it will be a case of Indian players exposed to burn out or some more local Indian talents thrown into the fray. That essentially will make the bidding process for new teams and the subsequent auction an intriguing prospect.

Former Cricketer Chetan Sharma has been appointed as the new Chief Indian selector, he has replaced former Indian spinner Sunil Joshi. Former pacers Debashish Mohanty and Abey Kuruvilla have also found a place in the selection committee appointed by the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), which is led by Madan Lal.

The richest cricket board in the world has also decided to support the ICC’S bid for the inclusion of Cricket in the 2028 Olympics.

With the T20 format gaining global popularity continuously, it may augur well for the planned globalisation of Cricket.

Rajeev Shukla, the veteran Congress leader was officially appointed the Vice President of the BCCI. Shukla was expected to be offered the post because of his wide experience as a cricket administrator. The former IPL Chairman had served as the Vice President from 2011-2014.

So, there would be high hopes from him to excel in the familiar role.

Pragyan Ojha, the retired Indian spinner has been inducted to the IPL Governing Council after been nominated by the Indian Cricketers Association (ICA) as a player representative. During his playing days, Ojha was known for his tenacity and is sure to revel in his new role.

The role of National Cricket Academy has been huge in providing world class cricketing facilities and helping players to recuperate and improve on their skills. Similarly, BCCI is working to set up a new National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru apart from establishing zonal academies. With Rahul Dravid at the helm of Cricketing matters at the NCA, it is one of the most bankable projects of BCCI.

In a bid to expand the IPL brand even further, one assumes the BCCI has the right plans to monitor injuries and provide remedial solutions so that key players don’t miss important tours. As a pure fan, one also expects clarity on injury and workload management issues.

The recent debacle involving Rohit Sharma and his injury raised critical questions on BCCI’S injury management policies.

Is the Sourav Ganguly led BCCI ready to own up on such issues?

There’s no harm to offer more transparency on the players and the game that all the Indians love.

What do you reckon?

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