Published: Nov 30, 2025, 04:53 PM (IST)
Edited: Nov 30, 2025, 04:53 PM (IST)
Today, league cricket is being discussed worldwide. League cricket has become huge, and everyone connects it to the IPL. But a year before the IPL’s inception, another league was launched. That league was the first of its kind. No one in India had even considered it at the time. But the Indian Cricket League can be considered the father of league cricket in India. The idea behind it was Dr. Subhash Chandra, Chairman of the Essel Group.
India had been eliminated in the first round of the One Day Cricket World Cup. At a time of grief in the country, Dr. Chandra decided to introduce cricket fans to a new flavor and atmosphere. The Indian Cricket League divided teams based on cities, similar to the IPL that later became the norm. Players from different countries were included in the league. The T20 cricket league was launched with colorful clothing, floodlights, and a white ball. Big names like Kapil Dev and Brian Lara joined it.
Even the BCCI wasn’t very enthusiastic about T20 cricket at that time. He was unsure about the success of T20 cricket. But Dr. Chandra’s foresight had seen that it was the future of cricket. Not just T20, but league cricket itself would change the world. Back then, no one expected the magnitude of this new format.
Dr. Chandra also mentioned this in 2016. He said, “Yes, the IPL became successful because of the ICL. And the Board of Control for Cricket in India has made a lot of money from it.”
The IPL began in 2008 and has grown significantly since then. Now, the Board earns thousands of crores of rupees from broadcast rights alone. But when the ICL launched in 2007, no one had even considered it.
