In a deal worth 235.75 billion Indian rupees ($3.02 billion), Disney’s Star has secured the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) television rights for the Indian subcontinent for the 2023-27 cycle. Viacom 18 was awarded digital rights to the annual Twenty20 tournament for 237.58 billion Indian rupees ($3.05 billion). For the five-year period, the BCCI received 483.9 billion Indian rupees ($6.20 billion) in total from the media rights. Former Indian batter Aakash Chopra believes that the BCCI’s massive windfall from the sale of IPL media rights (2023-2027 cycle) will result in massive increases in player salaries.
He claimed that a player like Jos Buttler could earn as much as ₹30-35 crore per season.
Aakash Chopra on IPL player salaries after the media rights deal
The BCCI secretary, Jay Shah, recently confirmed that the Indian cricket board is in talks with the ICC and other member boards about expanding the IPL window.
“The BCCI will utilise the revenue generated from IPL to strengthen our domestic cricket structure starting from grassroots, to boost infrastructure and spruce up facilities across India,” tweeted BCCI secretary Jay Shah.
The BCCI will utilize the revenue generated from
IPL to strengthen our domestic cricket structure starting from grassroots, to boost infrastructure and spruce up facilities across India and enrich the
overall cricket-watching experience.— Jay Shah (@JayShah) June 14, 2022
Chopra meanwhile shared his thoughts on the cash-rich T20 league’s expansion on his YouTube channel.
“Jay Shah has confirmed that the IPL is likely to get a bigger window going ahead. Due to the exponential rise in broadcasting rights, which has more than doubled, the players’ salaries can also be increased. Franchises can now build teams of ₹200 crore instead of the earlier ₹100 crore,” Chopra said.
“In case, a team is allowed to spend ₹200 crore on players, someone like Jos Buttler’s value could be ₹30-35 crore for one season. If a player is paid ₹30-35 crore for playing for 2.5 to 3 months, no matter how much England cricket pays, every player will be making a beeline to play the IPL. The big names will not be missing them. Even Ben Stokes could come back because it’s just astronomical that a player can be paid more than ₹30 crore for featuring in 14-18 games. I am sure there will be a bigger window for IPL soon and the same will reflect in ICC’s FTP as well,” he added.
