IPL owners want to raise the salary cap

Franchise owners ask the Board of Control for Cricket in India to raise the cap from US$2 million to $9m.

MUMBAI // Indian Premier League franchise owners asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India to consider raising the salary cap for players in the domestic Twenty20 league from US$2 million (Dh7.346m) to US$9m (Dh33.056m). A majority of the franchise owners also suggested all players be considered for the auction for IPL Season Four, to be held in 2011. The talks between the 10 IPL team owners and senior BCCI officials were the first since the conclusion of the third season of the domestic T20 league.

Negotiations will now enter a second stage to deal with player auctions and the increase in the number of teams from eight to 10. The number of matches per league season is also expected to increase from 60 to 94. Since a new auction will take place and two new teams ? Pune and Kochi ? are joining the league, most franchise owners felt the player-retention clause, fixed at four Indian and three foreign players, should be scrapped.

"We have all expressed our views. Most of us want the salary cap to be raised to US$9 million. We also hope that the format of the tournament does not change and that players are available to all at the auction," Vijay Mallya, the owner of Royal Challengers Bangalore, said. Today's meeting was the first without the now-suspended IPL commissioner Lalit Modi. Modi has been suspended pending investigations of alleged corruption related to bidding for two of the clubs, television broadcast deals and other matters. He has denied any wrongdoing.

The Kings XI Punjab team owner Ness Wadia extended his support to Modi, saying: "I hope he is given a fair trial by the BCCI and the government of India." Wadia, however, added that the IPL would continue to move ahead. "There are no differences between the BCCI and IPL team owners," he said. "It was a formal meeting. We are all here to do business and everyone is happy with everyone." The team owners' views will be presented to the IPL Governing Council, which meets at the BCCI headquarters on tomorrow.

* AP