Indian Premier League Chairman Lalit Modi dismissed reports that the second edition of the Twenty20 extravaganza would be co-hosted by England, saying the IPL is a domestic league with global appeal and would be played only on Indian soil.
“Right off the drawing board we were certain that the Indian Premier League was not just a domestic league with limited appeal for the Indian cricket fan but a global league that would draw in viewer ship across a global diaspora of fans from around the world, making the IPL one of the most watched sporting spectacles in modern day sport,” Modi said.
“But we have no plans to host IPL in England. It’s a domestic league which will be played in India,” said the BCCI vice president.
Media reports earlier claimed that the second edition of the cash-rich IPL, scheduled for April-May this year, would be split with five weeks of action in India and three weeks in England.
Modi also expressed hopes that the star England players, who missed out on the inaugural edition after the restricted by their board, would feature in this year’s event.
“The IPL has garnered huge interests from players across the world and the English are no different. IPL will be holding a fresh player auction on February 6 and I’m certain that the quality of talent available to the franchises on offer will be similar if not better than what was available during the historic first ever player auction held last year,” Modi was quoted as saying by
Sportzpower.Com.