IPL owners, tech giants in ‘final’ race for Hundred franchise teams

New Delhi, Jan 27 (PTI) Four Indian Premier League franchises — Mumbai Indians, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Lucknow Super Giants, Delhi Capitals’ co-owners GMR Group — along with a consortium of global tech giants featuring leaders from Google, Microsoft, Adobe have made it to the final shortlist of the Hundred, according to a report.

According to the report in ESPNcricinfo, London-based franchises Oval Invincibles and London Spirit have drawn significant interest, with five-time IPL champions MI and the tech consortium competing for the Invincibles.

Meanwhile, Lancer Capital, led by Manchester United co-owner Avram Glazer, has expressed strong interest in both London-based teams.

RPSG Group’s Sanjeev Goenka, who owns the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL, has shown interest in London Spirit and Manchester Originals.

The Manchester Originals franchise has also seen considerable interest.

“All the investors shortlisted will need to make one final financial bid, which will be binding, with the highest bid determining the winner for each of the eight franchises,” stated the report.

Lancashire, the host county, has shown flexibility in allowing potential franchise owners to manage cricketing operations, “which is a big factor for several investors, especially the IPL teams”.

The tech consortium vying for franchises includes high-profile names such as Sundar Pichai (Google CEO), Satya Nadella (Microsoft CEO), Shantanu Narayen (Adobe CEO), Egon Durban (Silver Lake Management CEO), and Satyan Gajwani (co-founder of Major League Cricket and vice-chairman of Times Internet).

Led by Nikesh Arora, CEO of cybersecurity firm Palo Alto Networks, the consortium has been shortlisted for both the Oval Invincibles and London Spirit franchises.

Sunrisers Hyderabad owners, the Sun Group, are “understood to be on the shortlist” for three franchises: Trent Rockets (Nottingham), Northern Superchargers (Leeds) and Welsh Fire (Cardiff).

CVC Capital Partners, who own Gujarat Titans in the IPL, are bidding for Birmingham Phoenix, the report stated.

Some IPL franchises that initially expressed interest — such as Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals, and Punjab Kings — are currently not on the shortlist, it added.

“It could not be confirmed whether the Super Kings and Knight Riders, who have teams in overseas T20 leagues outside India, have been shortlisted,” the report stated.

It further stated US-based entrepreneur Sanjay Govil, who owns Washington Freedom, is “interested” in three franchises outside of London.

The bidding process is still not over, and the ECB is expected to announce the schedule for 2025 Hundred season this week, while the new owners will take control from 2026.