IPL 2025 to Have 84 Matches? BCCI Secretary Jay Shah Says 'It's in The Contract But...'

The IPL seems a divided house over the relevance of mega auction. The teams that have build strong squads are advocating it should be done away with and others with weaker teams are in favour of it being continued.

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The discussions are ongoing and soon a decision could be taken. The final call rests with the BCCI but the board will give equal importance to both the majority and minority voices, says board secretary Jay Shah.

“We’ve heard the views of all the franchises,” Shah was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz. “For us a minority view is as important as the majority opinion. Ultimately the office-bearers (of the BCCI) will decide. Those who have a good side said there is no need for the big auction and those without a good side wanted the big auction.”

Shah though hinted that mega auction may not be completely done away with though. “Continuity is important as shuffling, for the growth of the game,” he said.

Another major topic of discussion will be to increase the number of matches from 74 to 84 next season. With the expansion of IPL from eight to 10 teams, the number of matches haven’t risen proportionally (based on home and away format, ideally there should be 94 matches including the playoffs and the final).

However, given a packed international calendar, workload of players and limited window, it could become a challenge.

“Nothing is confirmed,” Shah said. “We will collectively decide. We’ve to factor in the workload of the players and the window also. It’s in the contract but it is up to the BCCI to decide.”

The BCCI is also mulling over adding a sixth team in the Women’s Premier League too dependent upon the availability of enough players.

Meanwhile, BCCI has also suggested that ICC create a fund dedicated for the longest format of the game as it’s quite expensive to organise a Test match.

“I am a member of F&CA (Finance and Commercial Affairs) of the ICC. I have suggested there should be a dedicated fund for Test cricket. It’s very expensive to host Test matches. If the (ICC) Board approves, we can do that. We’re trying to create a special fund for Test cricket,” Shah said.