‘This is a new era; T20 cricket is here to stay,’ says former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly during the launch of the Bengal Pro T20 League in Kolkata. While Test cricket remains the pinnacle, the impact of T20s cannot be overlooked, both in terms of unearthing talent and making money.
The Bengal Pro T20 League is an eight-team franchise league of the Cricket Association of Bengal. The eight-team franchise league is the first state-based cricket league in India that will run both men’s and women’s competitions thereafter.
The tournament will commence on June 11 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The complete schedule is yet to be announced.
All eight teams are based in the cities and districts of West Bengal.
Bengal Pro T20 League – Teams, Captains & Owners
| Team Name | Owners | Men’s Captain | Women’s Captain |
| Kolkata Royal Tigers | Lux Industries & Shyam Steel | Abishek Porel | Mitali Paul |
| Adamas Howrah Warriors | Adamas University | Anustup Majumdar | Dhara Gujjar |
| Rashmi Medinipur Wizards | Rashmi Group | Abhimanyu Easwaran | Richa Ghosh |
| Rarh Tigers | Shrachi Group | Shahbaz Ahmed | Titas Sidhu |
| Malda Sobisco Smashers | Sobisco Limited | Mukesh Kumar | Hrishita Basu |
| Murshidabad Kings | Pritam Electricals & Jalan Builders | Sudip Kumar Gharami | Deepti Sharma |
| Harbour Diamonds | GD Mining | Manoj Tiwary | Sukanya Parida |
| Servotec Siliguri Strikers | ServoTec Power Systems | Akash Deep | Priyanka Bala |
The tournament targets unearthing young cricket talent across West Bengal. The state has given several great players to the country, be it the likes of Pankaj Roy, Dilip Doshi, Sourav Ganguly, and current Team India pacer Mohammed Shami.
Dada, who represented India in 113 Tests and 311 ODIs, welcomed the Bengal Pro T20 League and said:
“It’s(T20 Leagues) happening in every state. We are probably 5–6 years late on this. Any way of playing the sport will always be very helpful. T20 is an important part of cricket these days, and this will be a huge opportunity for everyone to perform,” Sourav Ganguly said at the function.
Indian women’s team bowling great Jhulan also echoed the same words.
“To be able to witness the Bengal Pro T20 League launch is truly amazing. I would like to thank the CAB for making this possible. I wish all the players who will be participating to give their best and win it for their team. This league will surely help bring forward more talent from Bengal who will represent IPL and Women’s Premier League in the coming years,” said Jhulan.
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The inaugural Bengal Pro T20 League has the backing of some top owners, associated across the eight teams, with the target of developing cricket in the state and contributing to the league’s success.
Some prominent names like Lux Industries and ServoTec Power Systems continue their association with cricket, but the presence of some heavyweights like Shrachi Group, Rashmi Group, Sobisco Limited, and others shows the massive craze of cricket among top multinational companies.
Rarh, a region involving Bardhhaman and Birbhum districts, has a team named the Rarh Tigers, with Shrachi Group as their sole owner. The men’s team will be led by current Sunrisers Hyderabad all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed, while Titas Sadhu, the young all-rounder who has represented Delhi Capitals in the WPL, will be in charge of the women’s team.
Shrachi Group, a Rs 10 billion conglomerate, is involved in businesses as diverse as agro-machinery, engineering and EPC, real estate, and stationery. They have now ventured into cricket and would be expecting to give the established brands a run for their money.
Can Bengal Pro T20 League blossom like TNPL & Co.?
One of the major reasons behind state associations moving into T20 cricket is the identification of young talent and giving it the platform to blossom. The move can also benefit the state franchises in the IPL. For example, with the Kolkata Knight Riders, there is hardly any local talent associated with the franchise currently.
With the Bengal Pro T20 League, there is a good chance that the talent is likely to be noticed by the IPL franchises. After all, the ultimate aim for any youngster picking up a bat or a ball today is to find a place in the IPL dugout.
As Ganguly rightfully pointed out, the game is evolving thick and fast, and the administrators too need to evolve as per the needs of the cricketers and the audience. IPL has given a platform to several youngsters who have gone on to represent Team India across formats: Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, and others, to name a few.
Even the Tamil Nadu Premier League, or TNPL, has emerged as one of the top T20 state leagues in the country, where there has been a constant production of talented cricketers for some time now. B. Sai Sudarshan hasn’t done badly for the Gujarat Titans and has also gone on to represent India in T20Is.
Some other states, like Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and Karnataka, have also benefited from the state-driven T20 leagues.
With the onset of the Bengal Pro T20 League, it is time for the cricketers from the North-East to utilize the platform, show their potential, and make a name for themselves in the coming days.
