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Questions galore following IPL decisions

The BCCI's decision to terminate Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab, two of the original IPL teams, and put the new Kochi franchise on notice, has raised plenty of questions

Tariq Engineer
10-Oct-2010
The BCCI's decision to terminate Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab, two of the original IPL teams, and put the new Kochi franchise on notice, has raised plenty of questions about the timing and execution of the decision, and its effects on the league in the immediate and longer terms.
The Finances
The teams' financial and growth projections were made on the basis of a 10-team, 94-match tournament from the fourth year onwards. The BCCI then came up with a new format reducing the number of matches to 74, which the franchises were not happy about. Now the number of matches will be reduced even further, which means the teams will generate lesser revenue from sponsorships, ticket sales and merchandise sales. What happens to their revenue models as a result?
The broadcast rights deal signed with Sony requires the broadcaster to pay a higher amount to the BCCI starting in the fourth year, but was predicated on there being 10 teams as well. Will there be another renegotiation of that contract?
The format
What happens to the carefully constructed format the IPL governing council came up with that split the teams into two groups of five? The league could go back to being just eight teams in 2011, but what happens if Kochi goes the same way of the two terminated teams? Admittedly, that is unlikely, as the board has already given Kochi a second chance to get its act together. And if Kochi fails to come together, the board could conceivably have another suitor waiting in the wings.
Lalit Modi's plan for the league was clear. Eight teams for the first three years, ten teams thereafter. Will the board choose to hold fresh team auctions to replace the expelled teams, or will it stick with eight?
The management strategy
Why did the board choose not to send the show-cause notices that would have given the two teams 15 days to respond to the accusations, something it decided to do at its annual general meeting on September 29? Why did it decide to give Kochi another a chance to get organised, but not the other two teams?
Why has the BCCI acted against the two today when these infringements have existed for at least a year and a half? The sale of part of the Rajasthan Royals team to Raj Kundra and Shilpa Shetty in February, 2009, was a very public deal, and Shetty has been a regular presence at the team's matches.
The franchises
The expulsion of two IPL teams fundamentally alters Lalit Modi's plan for the league, which was the basis on which the original teams signed up for the IPL. How will they react to the expulsion? Will they decide they need to come together and present a united front to the board?

Tariq Engineer is a senior sub-editor at Cricinfo