After making the biggest bid for the inaugural Women's Premier League 2023 (WPL), the owners of the Ahmedabad franchise, Adani Sportsline, announced their team's name for the glitzy league which will be played in March.
The Ahmedabad franchise will play in the WPL with the name 'Gujarat Giants'. The Adani Group broke banks at the auction held by the BCCI on Wednesday and bought the Ahmedabad franchise for a whopping Rs 1289 crores. Meanwhile, the players' auction is expected to be held in February while the WPL will be played between March 4 to March 26 (tentative dates) just before the start of Men's IPL.
"The Indian women's cricket team has been doing exceptionally well -- and a cricket league for women is a significant step in creating more opportunities for women through sports," said Pranav Adani, Director, Adani Enterprises.
The Adani Group has also acquired the franchise rights in the UAE’s International League T20 - Gulf Giants - along with conducting a full marathon every year in Ahmedabad. The Adani Group also has a franchise in Legends League Cricket, called Gujarat Giants.
The Gujarat Giants cricket franchise in the upcoming Women's Premier League joins Adani Sportsline's family of successful teams, like the Gulf Giants in the ongoing ILT20 in the UAE, and the Gujarat Giants in the Pro Kabaddi League.
"Cricket is an inseparable part of the country's fabric and Adani Sportsline was keen to begin their association with the sport with the inaugural edition of the Women's Premier League. While I wish every other franchise the very best, I look forward to the Gujarat Giants standing out as the top team in this new, exciting league," he added.
A total of five franchises will be splurging a whopping amount of Rs 4669.99 Crore on the WPL. Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Lucknow are the five city franchises and here are the corporates who have won the rights to own them.
Adani Group had offered a bid of ₹1289 crores and has been declared winners for Ahmedabad, followed by Mumbai Indians, who will own Mumbai for an bidding amount of ₹912.99 crores for a 10-year license. The other three winners are Capri Global for ₹757 crore, JSW Group for ₹810 crore and RCB (₹901 crore) for Bangalore. Capri Global will own Lucknow and JSW Group bagged Delhi.