Former Indian cricketer Saba Karim revealed that Lalit Modi had already introduced the concept of franchise-based cricket in the late 1990s. At that time, several players from Bengal supported the idea and were ready to join if such a league had been launched.

IPL’s Massive Growth Today

The huge financial success of the Indian Premier League became clear recently when teams like the Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru were sold in billion-dollar deals.

When the IPL first started in 2008, such high values were hard to imagine. The league was launched soon after India’s victory in the first World T20, which increased the confidence of the Board of Control for Cricket in India in this shorter format of the game.

Vision Before T20 Format

Lalit Modi had a clear vision long before T20 cricket even existed. He imagined a league based on teams and franchises at a time when cricket was mainly played in longer formats.

The first official T20 match was played in 2003, and the first international T20 took place in 2005 in Auckland. However, Modi had already suggested a similar league concept during the 1997–98 season.

Proposal to BCCI

Speaking on The Great Indian Cricket Show on Doordarshan, Karim explained how Modi presented this idea to the BCCI.

“Many people don’t know that Mr Lalit Modi came up with the T20 franchise cricket concept in 1997-98. Long before the IPL actually started, he submitted a proposal to BCCI suggesting the creation of a league like it," Karim said.

“There was no concept of T20s back then; it was primarily ODIs," Karim added.

Bengal Players Were Ready

Karim further shared that Modi had already begun working on the plan by involving players from Bengal. A team was almost ready, and contracts had even been signed.

“We were set to form a team for Bengal and had even signed contracts. It was also decided that each team would include two to three players from outside," Karim said.

Why the Idea Didn’t Work Then

Even though the idea was planned in detail and had player support, it could not be implemented at that time. As a result, the concept was delayed and only became a reality years later with the launch of the IPL.