When we talk about major cricketing leagues, how can we forget the Indian Premier League or the IPL? Every year, millions of cricket fans watch franchises like Delhi Daredevils, Kolkata Knightriders, etc. clash with each other to win millions of dollars in prize money. The IPL was founded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India and its current brand value is $6.7 billion. The IPL tournaments are organized in various Indian cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai. etc. The IPL2020 championship has been postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic that has forced millions of businesses to shut down.

More about the Indian Premier League

Let's look at the teams that make up the Indian Premier League. These are Kings X1 Punjab, Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Sunrise Hyderabad, Chennai Super Kings, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and Rajasthan Royals. The total prize money of IPL 2019 was $7 million, the title winners earned more than $2 million. The first and second title runners up earned $1.8 million and 1.2 million, respectively. So far, except Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, every other team has won the title at least once In its 12-year journey, 4 teams have exited the IPL- Deccan Chargers, Gujarat Lions, Rising Pune, and Kochi Tuskers.

English Cricket Leagues

The English cricket leagues are organized by the England and Welsh Cricket Board. These are the current leagues run by the ECB; Birmingham and District Cricket League, Essex Cricket League, Sussex Cricket League, Northamptonshire Cricket League, Surrey Championship, Cornwall Cricket League, Lincolnshire Premier League, Northern Premier Cricket League, North Wales Cricket League, North East Premier League, West of England Premier League, Yorkshire South Premier League, Home Counties Premier Cricket League, Devon Cricket League, and a few others. Apart from these cricket leagues, there are several county-level cricket competitions in England. These are akin to the Ranji-level tournaments of India.

Cricket leagues in Australia

Australia also has had a glorious tradition of cricket. It has won the ICC World Cup a couple of times and the reason behind its success is Australia's strong cricketing foundations. Domestic cricket in Australia is played under the following categories; First Class Cricket, Club cricket, Twenty-20 cricket, and Women's cricket. Domestic cricket teams in Australia play for the Sheffield Shield, a bequest laid down by Lord Sheffield in 1892. Currently, the following teams play for this Shield- Western Australia, Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria. New South Wales has been the most successful team in winning the Sheffield Shield.

Women cricket leagues around the world

In India, women cricket leagues are largely non-existent. While we do have the national women cricket team under the BCCI, there is no local cricket interaction among women. In Australia, the story is different. The Women's National Cricket League organizes all the local league matches in the country. The apex cricket league tournament comprises six teams. This is a round-robin format and the top team wins the Ruth Preddley Cup. The first WNCL tournament took place in 1996 after it replaced the Australian Women's Cricket Championships that were on since the early 1930s. In 2008-09, the Australian Cricket Board introduced the Women's Twenty-20 tournament.