IPL 2018: IPL franchises not happy with the revamped match timings suggested by Star Sports and BCCI

Star Sports suggested timings of double headers being changed from 4 PM to 5.30 PM and 8 PM matches to 7 PM.

IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla

The BCCI and IPL Governing Council have scheduled a meeting with the IPL franchises on Friday to discuss the new revamped timings of the IPL matches in upcoming IPL 2018. The franchises were reportedly not happy with the new timings suggested by new broadcasters Star Sports.

Traditionally, the IPL starts their matches at 4 pm and 8 pm on the days where there are double headers. However, this time, Star Sports have floated the idea of pushing 4 PM starts to 5.30 PM and rescheduling start of 8 PM matches to 7 PM to attain the maximum viewership.

IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla had said that the IPL GC had approved the changes in timings.

The broadcaster has requested for change in timings. By and large the GC has accepted it. It gets too late in the night if the game starts at 8pm," said Shukla after the IPL Governing Council meeting in New Delhi on Monday.

"The franchises are not in agreement with this proposal and will take it up with the IPL. They are in fact quite not very happy that something as important as this hasn't even discussed with them," sources, as quoted by Times of India.

Now it has been reported that the IPL GC will meet the franchise officials on Friday before taking a call on match timings.

The governing council will discuss the proposal in detail with all the franchises on Friday before taking a final call,” a source revealed to Sportstarlive.

The sponsorship deals for all the logos on our jersey are primarily based on the estimated TV viewership for the whole duration of the match. An overlap would into that aspect in a big way, especially since the double-headers are slotted over weekends and public holidays,” one of the team officials said on the condition of anonymity.

I hope the franchises unite on this front on Friday and the BCCI takes our opinion into consideration before it makes up its mind,” concluded the said official.

Even some members in BCCI are also not happy to see the changes in match timings.

A BCCI official said, “The central sponsorship agreements are usually based on calculations revolving an uninterrupted telecast of seven hours over the weekend. However, in the proposed system, the total duration of the broadcast may come down to five hours, which may fetch BCCI lower sums.”

 

 
 

By Jatin Sharma - 25 Jan, 2018

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