BCCI set to organise women’s red-ball zonal tournament in Pune
After paving the way to a world-class T20 tournament in the form of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) that brings all the international stars under one roof, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is planning to create a structure for red-ball cricket in the women’s circuit in the country.
The apex governing body of the sport in India is going to organise a six-team zonal red-ball tournament in Pune to give women’s cricketers a taste of the multi-day format.
The much-awaited tournament will feature six teams divided based on zones i.e. North, South, East, West, Central, and North-East.
The tournament is slated to kick-start from March 29 onwards and will begin with the quarterfinals. The quarters will be contested on March 29, 30, and 31.
The winners of the quarters will then advance to the semifinals. Both semis will be played simultaneously and will run from April 5 to 7. The final will be played on April 9, 10 and 11.
The schedule has been designed specifically keeping the ongoing Women’s Premier League in mind. The summit clash of the WPL 2024 tournament will be conducted on March 17 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
Therefore, there is an 11-day break between both competitions to ensure that the Indian players (both domestic and centrally contracted ones) get enough time to rest and recharge their batteries for the red-ball grind.
WPL 2024 off to a blazing start
The second edition of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) is off to a wonderful start. The six-team competition has already witnessed a couple of edge-of-the-seat thrillers and promises to continue in the same vein.
