London [UK], June 4: Lalit Modi, the former Chairman of the Indian Premier League (IPL), has made an ambitious prediction regarding the future of women's cricket. He believes that in the next 15 years, individual franchises in women's cricket could reach valuations of a billion dollars.

In a conversation with a news outlet, the 62-year-old sports executive highlighted the rapid growth of women's cricket, significantly propelled by the Women's Premier League (WPL). He suggested that this growth could soon surpass many prominent men's sports leagues worldwide, positioning women's cricket just behind the men's IPL.

Modi remarked, "The level of women's cricket is already comparable to what men's IPL was two decades ago. The crowds are enthusiastic, and the financial backing is impressive. For instance, Mr. Adani invested ₹1,600 crore in the Gujarat Giants, while the Mumbai Indians garnered around $100 million or ₹400 crore in their inaugural season of the men's IPL. This shows that women's cricket has made a remarkable financial impact right from the start."

While he acknowledged that achieving the current multi-billion dollar status of established men's franchises will take time, Modi pointed out that the financial landscape for women's cricket is more favorable now than it was for men's cricket back in 2008.

He estimated that it would take approximately 15 to 20 years for women's cricket to fully realize its potential audience. Modi confidently asserted that it would surpass long-standing Western sports leagues, becoming the second most valuable sporting property globally, right after the men's IPL.

"You will witness women's cricket rise to become the second most popular sport in the world, following men's cricket and the IPL. In terms of viewership, it will take time, but I predict that in 20 years, women's cricket will also be valued in billions for each team. This will be a significant boost for the sport," he added.

The recent surge in the WPL's commercial success, along with India's historic victory in the Women's Cricket World Cup on home soil, underscores the promising future of the Women's Premier League.

Reflecting on his tenure as Vice President of the BCCI in 2006, Modi recounted his role in merging the independent Women's Cricket Association of India (WCAI) into the BCCI, which was a pivotal moment for women's cricket in India.

"I was instrumental in integrating women into the BCCI's constitution. We began to see progress during my time, and I didn't anticipate that the IPL ecosystem would be ready for a women's league for another decade. However, they have achieved it sooner than expected," Modi stated.

While celebrating the financial stability of Indian cricket, Modi also issued a cautionary note about the international cricket structure's dependence on India. He reiterated his proposal to eliminate bilateral One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and replace them with franchise-based "IPL-style" Test matches to support struggling global cricket boards.

"Bilateral Test matches are on the decline. One-Day matches should also be phased out. Test cricket is vital, but it risks fading away unless it is integrated with club cricket due to a lack of global viewership. It's essential to develop players for T20 formats, even if not every aspect of the game is profitable. The BCCI operates as a non-profit, but other countries need to generate revenue to sustain cricket. Without India's participation, nations like Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Bangladesh face financial crises," he concluded.