Shorter formats of cricket are becoming more popular day by day. People are more interested in T20 cricket than ODI or Test cricket. Even the T10 format is introduced which has also become quite popular all over the world.
Other than the international tournaments, many cricket leagues are played the whole year. Players from all over the world participate in these leagues. Almost every big cricketing country has its own Cricket League nowadays. Other cricket leagues are also played around the world and they are probably less known, but the quality of cricket is very high.
We have made a list of some of the best Cricket Leagues below:
Indian Premier League (IPL)
The Indian Premier League is the number one cricket league right now. IPL has changed the entire cricketing world. The Indian Premier League was founded in the year 2007 after India’s victory in the first-ever T20 World Cup.
IPL has added more entertainment, more branding, and more revenue in cricket. The IPL was ranked the sixth most attended league in the world among all sports while it was ranked first in the list of the best cricketing leagues.
IPL is administrated by the BCCI and the inaugural edition of this league was played in 2008. IPL has a round-robin format with a group system and playoffs. Previously a total of 8 teams participated in this league but the administration has added 2 more teams in 2022 to make it a 10-team competition.
The 10 teams will be divided into two groups and in each group, 5 teams will battle against each other. Chennai Super Kings are the current champions of the league having won the 2021 edition. Mumbai Indians are the most successful team in the history of IPL with 5 trophies in the 14 seasons so far.
The European Cricket League (ECL)
The ECL is a professional cricket league in the T10 format, and different cricket clubs from European countries participate in this league. Europe is not well known for cricket or having a big cricket team so this league was established to popularize cricket in European countries.
The European Cricket league was founded in the year 2018 and the first edition of the league was played in 2019. The clubs that participate in this league are the champions in their countries’ local or domestic tournaments. The first edition of the ECL was played in La Manga Club in Spain, where a total of 8 clubs participated in the tournament. The VOC Rotterdam club was the champion of the inaugural season while the SG Findorff club ended as runners-up.
The ECL was not played in 2020 and 2022 due to the COVID-19 crisis all over the world hence, only one season of the ECL has been possible so far. But the European Cricket league has again started in 2022 and it is broadcasting live streams on tv in almost 120 countries.
European Cricket League matches are played usually between teams such as:
- Tunbridge Wells vs Alby Zalmi
- Brigade vs Brescia CC
- Pak I Care Badalona vs Alby Zalmi
- Tunbridge Wells vs Brigade
The Celebrity Cricket League (CCL)
The Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) is a non-professional cricket league that is played in India between the teams of several Bollywood stars just for fun. A total of 8 teams participate in the Celebrity Cricket League. Each team is from a famous local film or movie industry in India.
The CCL was founded in 2011 and the format of the league is round robin and knock out. The inaugural edition was played in 2011 and from 2011 to 2016, the league was played in the T20 format while in 2017 and 2019, the league took place in the T10 format.
The latest edition of the Celebrity Cricket League was played in 2019 while the 2020 and 2021 editions were not possible due to Covid.
The Telugu Warriors is the most successful team in the CCL league with 3 trophies while the Chennai Rhinos and Karnataka Bulldozers have won 2 trophies each. Mumbai Heroes will play the 2022 season as the defending Champions.
Many big Bollywood stars participate in the Celebrity Cricket League and their fans get the chance to see their superstars on the cricketing field.
Odisha Cricket League (OCL)
The Odisha Cricket League is a local state-level cricket league in India that is held by the Odisha Cricket Association. A total of 6 different Odisha cricket teams participate in the league and the first edition was played in 2020.
All the matches of the OCL are played in the Barabati Cricket Stadium in Cuttack which is also the headquarters for cricket activities of the Odisha Cricket Association. All the 6 teams face each other twice in the league stage while the top 4 qualify for the semi-finals.
The names of the 6 teams that participate in this cricket league are given below:
- Odisha Tigers
- Odisha Lions
- Odisha Jaguars
- Odisha Cheetahs
- Odisha Panthers
- Odisha Pumas
Simulated Reality League Cricket
The Simulated Reality League Cricket is different from the traditional cricket leagues that are played all over the world. Simulated Reality League Cricket is a virtual sporting event that is made completely out of computer graphics imaging that encourages real-life events.
The SRL features the events or even players and teams that also exist in the real life. It aims to make people feel as they are watching a real and live sporting event. Even Simulated Reality League betting is very famous among fans.
During Covid times, people were not allowed to go outside and watch the cricket matches live and that is why SRL was introduced to give people the feeling of a real match without even leaving their living room.
The SRL is completely based on calculating algorithms and artificial intelligence. The format of SRL is the same as IPL, meaning each team plays for 20 overs but the duration of each match is fixed at 2 hours. The toss is held 5 minutes before the start of the game while there is also a short break after the completion of the first innings.