The second edition of the Legends League cricket is currently underway in India. After hosting games in Calcutta, Lucknow and Delhi, the action has now moved to Cuttack. The congestion in all of the centers has been really good and it’s safe to say that, like the first edition, the second is sure to be a success. Ahead of the Legends League match between Bhilwara Kings and Gujarat Giants, co-founder and CEO of the league, Raman Raheja told NDTV how he views the tournament’s success and roadmap.
“More than I appreciate it, the fans love it. You know, taking it to India, which is now the home of world cricket, most of the spectators are from India and the subcontinent. the idea was to make it big and visually clear that India helps make it pop. The public loves it and when the public loves it the success of the product really starts to show. It becomes quality cricket, so it’s really cool, “Raheja said.
It is important to note that in all Legends League matches to date, female referees have played a key role and remain referees on the pitch. The co-founder of the league explained why having female referees was a conscious decision.
“In fact, we also used this idea in the first edition, where female empowerment was one of our main initiatives. We want to propose unique ways to involve women in sport. This game is also about officials. , they are as good as male referees. What we saw is a good success because one of the referees we worked with last season was from Hong Kong and when she got home she was literally a celebrity “And asking how they can become referees and organize international matches, which is a ‘ great story, ”Raheja said.
The first edition of the tournament took place in Oman and was a resounding success. So what prompted the organizers to come to India?
“I’d be lying if I said that (there are plans to hold the second edition in India right from the start). We were very successful in Oman, but we had a lot of fans for this event which was to be held in India. it is the independence of India. 75th year of the year and we realized that as a championship we can support the celebrations by bringing the championship to India. In July we decided, if everyone allowed it, to organize it in India. And this is exactly the plan that has changed from Oman to India, “Raheja said.
After the Cuttack phase, the Barkatullah Khan Stadium in Jodhpur will also host the matches of the tournament. The field hosted the last international match in 2002: India v West Indies. So why did the organizers choose a stadium that hasn’t hosted an international match for over 20 years?
“We started from Calcutta, Lucknow, Delhi, Cuttack and now we will go to Jodhpur. Jodhpur hasn’t hosted an international match for 20 years. This is one of the reasons why we want to promote sport, especially in the regions. , where there is a large number of followers but where cricket is limited. It is not possible to bring international cricket to smaller centers on a regular basis, so we decided to support and take on active cricket, and so we chose Jodhpur Gone, “said Reheja.
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Finally, the league’s co-founder and CEO also explained how the league will only focus on bringing in more loyal fans and how it doesn’t want to disrupt the current cricket ecosystem.
“Our business model is about players who have retired, we want to create an ecosystem of cricketers who don’t receive assignments like commentary or coaching but have done a lot for national or club cricket. They are what we want. Our business model revolves around this. It’s about the whole ecosystem of legends, whether it’s the referees. We don’t want to interfere with the current cricket system, “Raheja said.
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