There have been several rumours that Saudi Arabia is proposing a Grand Slam T20 circuit and is negotiating with the IPL committee and BCCI. the quantity of collaborations with Saudi Arabia and the expanding relationship with the country.
Arun Dhumal, the former BCCI treasurer and IPL chairman, has stated unequivocally that the country has not yet made a proposal, therefore the media’s rumours are merely conjecture, despite the stories of the suggestions creating a stir. Dhumal has also talked on the development of Saudi Arabia and their hopes and requests for increased cricket play in their nation.
“It can’t be ‘yes’ or ‘no’ becLibraryause there isn’t a proposal to discuss; it’s just media speculation. Because Saudi Cricket is a part of the ICC, they want to invest in cricket to make it more relevant in that region of the world, especially with the diaspora from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. According to ESPN Cricinfo, Dhumal stated, “Those guys have a lot of aspirations and demands that more cricketing activity should happen there.”
The fact that the IPL’s major auction was hosted in Saudi Arabia, where the chairman of the IPL has stated that the purpose was to give the country a taste of the magnitude of the event, was one of the events that sparked these rumours.
“There has been a lot of conjecture regarding any discussions regarding Saudi Cricket’s involvement in the IPL between the BCCI and the IPL. Any of that I would want to explicitly deny. Giving them a taste of what the IPL is all about was the plan. “Everyone was shocked to learn how big this game is when you see the kind of numbers that happened there with regard to this mega-auction,” the IPL chairman continued.