A full-fledged women’s Indian Premier League (IPL) is expected to begin next year. The Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) said that the tournament will be held “soon”.

Women’s IPL will be held alongside men’s IPL with three teams, However, many believe that women should have their own separate tournament with more teams.

The Women’s T20 Challenge will continue this year, but according to BCCI secretary Jay Shah, things will alter shortly.

“I want to assure you that BCCI is not only sincere but is taking all necessary steps to start a full-fledged women’s league similar to the IPL soon,” Shah told Reuters in an email.

“The huge interest among fans and players towards the women’s T20 Challenge is an encouraging sign and we are all committed to making it happen.”

The entire IPL 2020 edition and the second leg of the previous year were rescheduled in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) due to rising Covid-19 cases in India.

The 2022 edition is scheduled to begin in the last week of March.

“The circumstances were different in the last couple of years, and we managed to keep the show going under difficult circumstances by shifting it to the UAE.

“The BCCI is keeping a close watch on the COVID-19 situation in the country and if it is conducive, we will stage the event in India this year and I am pretty hopeful about that.”

The board would take a “wait and watch approach” on the presence of spectators, depending on COVID-19 guidelines, he said.