BCCI invites bids for new IPL team

The BCCI has floated a tender, inviting bidders for a new IPL team following the termination of the Deccan Chargers franchise.

Leading Indian newspapers on Sunday carried an advertisement from the BCCI which read, "Under this invitation to tender, the winning bidder will be granted the right to own and operate a new team which will compete in the IPL in each year from and including 2013 onwards and will have the opportunity (if applicable and subject to qualification) to compete in each and any CLT20 which is staged from 2013 onwards." The deadline for submitting the bids is noon on October 25.

The bids have been invited with respect to 12 cities, including Hyderabad where the owners of the Deccan Chargers franchise were based. The others are Ahmedabad, Cuttack, Dharamsala, Indore, Kanpur, Kochi, Nagpur, Noida, Rajkot, Ranchi and Vizag.

The termination of the Deccan Chargers franchise was confirmed on Saturday when the Bombay High Court rejected its independent arbitrator's ruling that the BCCI's decision to dissolve the franchise be stayed. The only avenue left for Deccan Chargers is to appeal against the High Court decision in India's Supreme Court.

The saga, which culminated in the termination, can be traced back to June this year when reports suggested that Deccan Chargers Holdings Limited (DHCL), the owners of the side, were exploring the possibility of selling the franchise. In August, the BCCI gave DHCL until the end of the month to pay its player dues, and a month later the owners put the franchise up for sale after approaching the Indian board for help. After DHCL refused the sole bid it received at the September 13 auction, the BCCI terminated the franchise, triggering a legal battle.

The BCCI will be keen on finalising a new, ninth team before the next edition of the IPL in 2013, as it will, otherwise, result in reduced franchise fees and TV rights payments. Following a ten-team IPL in 2011, the Kochi Tuskers Kerala franchise was terminated last year in September. Two other franchises - Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals - are still involved in litigation with the BCCI, and the IPL is on the lookout for a new title sponsor after DLF Ltd ended its five-year association with the tournament.