Something quite significant is being discussed inside BCCI right now and honestly,if it actually happens,cricket as we have known it for decades could look completely different by 2028 .
According to reports,BCCI is seriously evaluating possibility of cutting down bilateral cricket matches to make room for extended IPL season . And this is not some casual internal chat — apparently broadcasters themselves are pushing hard in this direction.
One anonymous BCCI official directly said,"We can't play 94 games in the current window as the monsoon starts after May. Either we split into two halves or we do it from the first week and have it till May 15." That one statement alone explains how complicated this whole scheduling situation already is.
Core issues being discussed right now:
- IPL expansion plans would add 20 matches,with 2028 season being target year for this bigger format.
- Broadcasters are openly questioning value of less popular bilateral series and viewing them as less commercially attractive .
- BCCI also acknowledges that too many ICC events happening frequently may cause viewer fatigue and reduce fan engagement overall.
The thinking inside BCCI seems to be inspired by football model — where club competitions like Premier League and La Liga consistently generate more fan engagement than international fixtures . IPL was originally built on similar inspiration only,and now the idea is to push it even further toward that direction.
And honestly,this is where things get genuinely uncomfortable for rest of cricket world .
Boards like ECB are already heavily dependent on bilateral series for their own financial survival . England specifically is counting on upcoming India tour to stabilize its finances . If BCCI starts cutting those tours down,smaller and mid-level boards could face serious revenue pressure with no easy backup plan.
Just few days before this report came out,ICC itself expressed apprehension about rapid expansion of franchise cricket . That is not small thing . When governing body of sport starts raising concerns openly,it signals that tension between traditional cricket structure and franchise model is reaching one critical point.
What makes this situation complicated is that both sides have legitimate arguments . IPL genuinely creates massive commercial value,keeps fans engaged,and gives players consistent high-quality competition . But bilateral cricket carries historical weight,provides revenue to multiple nations,and is foundation on which entire international game was built for over hundred years .
Local fans of national cricket across Asia,England,Australia and West Indies are already reacting with mixed feelings online . Some are excited about longer IPL seasons,others are worried about what happens to Test cricket and traditional tours in this new model.
And real question nobody has cleanly answered yet — if bilateral cricket slowly loses its priority status,what actually holds international cricket together as one unified sport,or does it eventually just fragment into separate franchise ecosystems with no real common ground between them…
