NEW DELHI: Delhi Capitals co-owner Parth Jindal said he expects “one or two new teams” to be added to the Women’s Premier League (WPL) in the near future, which he believes will help the BCCI shift to a home-and-away format.For the first three seasons and the upcoming fourth season, the WPL has followed a caravan model, with the five-team league being staged across two to four cities. The fourth edition will take place in Navi Mumbai and Vadodara from January 9.
Jindal said he wants the WPL to move to a format similar to the IPL.“We would love to see the WPL home and away as well, this caravan format is okay, but it’s not ideal. I’m sure that the BCCI is working on it. The amount of time that they get is very short and that’s why, to fit the WPL within this window, but I hope we get a bigger longer window for the WPL going forward,” Jindal said, as quoted by news agency PTI.“And it is imminent that, either one or two new teams will come in at some point. And that’s why I think the cycle is such a short cycle with two WPLs over 14 months. So I’m pretty sure that the BCCI is planning on adding a team, and maybe with that addition, we move home and away. That would be ideal for the fans, for the game, and for the growth of the WPL,” he said.Jindal said India’s recent Women’s ODI World Cup win will increase the sport’s popularity. He said he is satisfied that he invested in the WPL at the right time.“Three years ago, we all owners took a leap of faith into the women’s game and we’re so thrilled that we did that. And for us, when the bidding happened, we were very clear that this is a spot that is only going to go from strength to strength. I wrote it in one of my tweets as well that this World Cup win in 2025 is the 1983 movement for women’s cricket. The interest in the WPL this season is going to be like it’s never been before,” Jindal said.
