In a stunning announcement on January 24, the BCCI formally dominated out Lucknow as a venue for the present version of the Girls’s Premier League (WPL). BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia confirmed that the match has been restricted to a two-venue ‘caravan’ mannequin, Navi Mumbai and Vadodara, citing logistical hurdles and a disappointing historical past of fan attendance within the Uttar Pradesh capital.
BCCI sidelines Ekana Stadium for Girls’s cricket and WPL: The explanations behind the choice
As per Sportstar, BCCI introduced that the choice to omit Lucknow’s Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium was pushed by town’s incapacity to attract adequate crowds for ladies’s cricket. Saikia was blunt in his evaluation, stating, “There’s at all times a scarcity of crowd for ladies’s cricket. Even for IPL matches, there may be much less crowd [in Lucknow] than at different venues. So we’re not requesting Lucknow to host girls’s occasions as a result of we would like folks to return and benefit from the sport.”
This transfer comes as a serious blow to the UP Warriorz, who’re successfully being denied a home-ground benefit for the second 12 months in a row. Saikia additionally famous that Delhi was excluded as a result of it’s at the moment being ready for the upcoming T20 World Cup, leaving the board with only a few viable choices that align with franchise territories.
“Earlier, we hosted the match throughout 4 venues, Delhi, Lucknow, Vadodara and Navi Mumbai. However this time we’re doing it solely in two venues, as a result of Delhi will likely be internet hosting the T20 World Cup, whereas there are points with Lucknow,” Saikia added.
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Two-venue technique for WPL 2026
The BCCI introduced that Navi Mumbai’s D.Y. Patil Stadium and Vadodara’s Kotambi Stadium will function the unique hosts for the 22-match match to make sure logistical effectivity. Saikia highlighted the success of the D.Y. Patil Stadium in the course of the 2025 Girls’s World Cup closing, noting, “So, we have now been left with only a few choices. Vadodara is an excellent venue, and alternatively, we have now seen the gang response and the amenities on the D.Y. Patil Stadium for the Girls’s World Cup closing. It was fantastic. These two venues are useful for us logistically as effectively,”
Whereas followers in Kolkata and Chennai have additionally been vocal about wanting matches, the BCCI clarified that matches can’t be held in cities and not using a devoted WPL franchise. Nevertheless, Saikia supplied a glimmer of hope for the longer term, promising that “In any other case, we have now very restricted States as a result of we have now to look into the territory of these franchises. We can’t have a match in Kolkata or Chennai as a result of neither of these cities has any WPL franchise. Subsequently, all the opposite States are additionally dominated out,” hinting at a broader growth as soon as the league provides extra groups to its roster.
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This text was first printed at WomenCricket.com, a Cricket Instances firm.
