CHENNAI: Due to various reasons, the different state leagues that were started after the success of the Indian Premier League over the years have struggled to survive the test of time. But as the Tamil Nadu Premier League is running in full throttle in its sixth year in front of packed houses in Coimbatore, it appears the tournament is only growing from strength to strength on and off the field.
Let’s make it clear. The road so far hasn’t been easy for the franchises, who not too long ago approached the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA), asking the state unit to help them out. Although franchises were sold in the price range of `3.3 to `5.3 crores in an initial couple of seasons, they struggled to make ends meet.
However, over the last couple of seasons, the story is beginning to change. Although the tournament was modelled on the IPL lines, the TNCA has tweaked the economic model so that franchises don’t bleed economically. The common revenue pool, which TNCA and the franchises used to share, no longer exists. However, the franchises are not complaining.
“We are not paying the franchise fee anymore. Which itself used to make up for a large share of our spending every year. We are on our own now with regards to operational costs and everything. All it needs for us is to be smart with our marketing and visibility aspects. If we can manage to bring in enough sponsors, then you don’t need to sweat over anything. Most of us can break even,” Chandramouli Ravishankar, who owns the Nellai Royal Kings, said.
That the TNCA has decided to do away with the franchise fee isn’t surprising. For starters, it is no longer reliant on TNPL for revenue as after becoming compliant with Lodha recommendations, it has started to get its share of income from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) annually.
“We have completely abolished the franchise fees for the last couple of seasons. So in terms of revenue generation, it is very negligible for the TNCA. But that is not a concern for us because the priority is to widen the talent pool. This season we have taken the tournament to Coimbatore and Salem for the first time and by doing this we are also ensuring that players from these regions get access to good facilities,” RS Ramasaamy, the TNCA secretary, said.
For years, there has been strong criticism that TNCA hasn’t taken cricket to the districts. However, over the last five years with Dindigul and Tirunelveli hosting a fair share of matches, the landscape is beginning to change. Apart from these cities, Tiruppur too has a good venue, which is expected to be on the TNPL map in the coming years.
Although the TNCA has stopped collecting the franchise fees, it is now fully dependent on the broadcast rights and gate collection for revenue. “Economically, it is not a win-win situation for TNCA. But we are benefiting by unearthing these new talents. Initially, we had no choice but to depend on TNPL for some revenue because we were not getting the funds from the BCCI. With that not being an issue any longer, we wanted to free up the burden on franchisees. We are getting `13.5 crores from broadcast deals and we get some from ticket sales, with which we manage the operational costs,” Ramasaamy said.
By saving up on the franchise fee, the teams have started focussing on building strong support staff and providing players with the best facilities. “Lot of us are associated with TNPL because of our passion for the game. There is nothing better than seeing some of the TNPL players making it to the IPL and even getting the India cap. We are able to provide good exposure to the players so that when they make the IPL cut, they are fully prepared. In that regard, it is important to get the right support staff who will help the players. Kudos to the TNCA too for doing all that they can,” Ravishankar said.