The Women's Indian Premier League (WIPL) looks set to become a reality, with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) plotting a March 2023 launch following next year's Women's T20 World Cup in South Africa.
The men's short-form league is one of the largest across any sport by revenue around the globe, and has helped usher in an era of white-ball dominance to cricket over the past decade and a half.
The BCCI has now announced plans to state associations outlining a five-team tournament to run in between the aforementioned international tournament and the men's Indian Premier League.
The proposals concede a likely clash with the inaugural season of the Women's Pakistan Super League, but showcase a belief there will be a place in the Future Tours Programme cycle for a fixed place.
The WIPL will succeed the Women's T20 Challenge, its precursor in the 20-over format in the country, though where the teams will hail from remains up in the air.
The Women's T20 World Cup, meanwhile, will see India go in search of silverware in South Africa, having been beaten in the 2020 final by Australia last time.
ECB chief insists no decision made on Mott future
England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive Richard Gould has denied reports a decision has already been made on Matthew Mott's future as white-ball coach.
Mott's future has been called into question in the aftermath of England's failure to defend their T20 World Cup crown in the United States and West Indies, losing to India in the semi-finals.
Mott also oversaw England's calamitous 50-over World Cup campaign last year, as they lost six of their nine matches in India and crashed out in the group stage.
Reports earlier this week suggested the decision had already been made to dispense with Mott's services, with Eoin Morgan a contender to succeed him, though the former limited-overs captain has since said he has no interest in the role.
Asked by BBC Test Match Special if Mott's future had already been decided, Gould said: "That's not true. That's certainly not true.
"Matthew Mott is a really good guy and coach. He's got a great track record and it is the same with [captain] Jos [Buttler].
"We are always assessing options - that is what happens in high-performance sport, you are always assessing your options.
"You never want to be drawn into being given the dreaded vote of confidence or anything like that. Competitive sport always brings scrutiny and decisions.
"We'll constantly want to assess our options but we'll always want to do the right thing by the sport, the team and individuals."
Faf du Plessis continues red hot form as Texas Super Kings secure nine-wicket win over MI New York in MLC Eliminator
Captain Faf du Plessis once again led from the front as the Texas Super Kings secured a nine-wicket win over defending champions MI New York in the eliminator of Major League Cricket 2024 at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas on Wednesday.
The Super Kings, after winning the toss and electing to field first, restricted New York to 163-8 from their 20 overs.
Rashid Khan (55) and Monank Patel (48) were the top run scorers for MI against an important 2-18 off four overs from Marcus Stoinis. Aaron Hardie also took two wickets while Dwayne Bravo finished with 1-21 from 1.3 overs.
Texas then needed only 18.3 overs to reach 167-1 thanks to a 47-ball 72 from du Plessis, his third fifty of the season, including six fours and three sixes.
That knock now brings du Plessis’s run total to 375 from seven games, form that he will hope translates to the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) where he will captain the St. Lucia Kings beginning August 29.
Devon Conway capitalized on some missed chances from the MI New York fielders to finish 51* while Hardie followed up his two wickets with 40* off 22 balls.
The Super Kings will now face the loser of the Qualifier between the Washington Freedom and San Francisco Unicorns in the Challenger on Friday for a place in Sunday’s final.
Full Scores:
MI New York 163-8 off 20 overs (Rashid Khan 55, Monank Patel 48, Marcus Stoinis 2-18, Aaron Hardie 2-22)
Texas Super Kings 167-1 off 18.3 overs (Faf du Plessis 72, Devon Conway 51*, Aaron Hardie 40*)
Timing not right for England coaching role, says former captain Morgan
Eoin Morgan says the timing is not right for him to take over as England's limited-overs coach if Matthew Mott departs.
Speculation has suggested Mott could leave his role following England's failure to defend their T20 World Cup crown in the United States and West Indies last month, losing to India in the semi-finals.
Morgan captained the side to glory at 2019's 50-over World Cup and retired from international cricket in 2022, having been credited with transforming England's white-ball culture.
The 37-year-old, who played 225 ODIs and 102 T20Is for England, has been tipped to coach his country in the future, but he is not tempted by the role at this moment.
"I've been asked a lot over the last couple of months about the role and whether I would take it on," he told Sky Sports.
"My answer has simply been, the timing for everything in my life at the moment is not right.
"Yes, I want to coach down the line, but I've got a young family and I spend a lot more time at home.
"I'm loving what I'm doing, watching cricket through this [punditry work].
"This news is news to me. It's not nice when a coach comes under fire and there is a lot of speculation about his future. Only time will tell what will happen."
England's T20 World Cup campaign followed a miserable defence of their ODI crown in India last year, where they lost six of their nine games and crashed out in the group stage.
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