Let the journey begin. They were the words of one of the most powerful men in world cricket this week when more than $800 million was forked out at an auction for just five franchise licenses in the soon-to-be WPL, a women's version of India's lucrative IPL cricket league.
Jay Shah, the honorary secretary of the BCCI, cricket's governing body in India, could not hide his delight at the franchise auction bringing in more than double the amount hoped for.
Without yet seeing a ball bowled, Viacom18 recently bought the rights for the first five years of the competition for $170m. Add in team and league sponsors and the BCCI is already looking at a billion dollar product.
