For the first time in the history of cricket, a new enterprise mimicking that of the NBA, NFL, and other competitive sports leagues across the world was launched in India in 2008, with player auctions and trades in full swing on an international level. This was the Indian Premier League (IPL). The name is based on Soccer’s English Premier League. IPL quickly became the most attended cricket league in the world and by 2014 was ranked sixth by average attendance among all sports leagues. Players worldwide fiercely compete in IPL auctions and trades for a spot. At present, the IPL is valued at US $6.3 billion as a brand, with four of its franchises – Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Kolkata Knight Riders – valued at approximately US $100 million or more.
In 2018, the women’s version of IPL called the “Women’s T20 Challenge” (WT20 Challenge) was launched beginning with three teams. The three WT20 Challenge teams were Supernovas, Trailblazers and Velocity, with Supernovas being the only team to have won the WT20 Challenge thrice. None of these teams represented any specific city in India. That changed when the plans to rebrand the tournament as Women’s Premier League (WPL) went underway in 2022 and materialized in 2023.
Although planned to set off with six-to-seven new teams, it began only with five new teams—still an expansion considering the addition two more teams. The three WT20 Challenge teams were disbanded and the five new teams were Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Giants, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and UP Warriorz. As can be observed, three of the teams have mirrored the names of the male IPL teams corresponding to their respective cities.
As predicted, WPL became one of the (if not the most) significant feat for women’s sports in India, in addition to being the first of its kind offering opportunities for women cricketers from other countries.
The following table represents a short winner/runner-up statistic of the Women’s T20 Challenge. Post the rebranding, a new table will be inserted here with the launch of the WIPL.
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*The 2018 Women’s T20 Challenge was a one-off exhibition match. As such, there was no “Player of the Series” award. This was also the only year when the “Player of the Final” award was granted to a member of the losing side. Thus, the award recipient’s team is specifically indicated in abbreviated form only for this year.
**A Women’s T20 Challenge was to be held in 2021, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It coincided with the Men’s IPL playoffs instead, in 2022.