IPL franchise owners waiting for December 5 verdict on the Lodha-BCCI tiff

The ongoing tiff between the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the Supreme Court-appointed Lodha Panel is giving sleepless nights to IPL franchise owners. This stand-off has already delayed the media rights allocation, but the growing suspense threatens to delay the wholesome preparations of the tournament.

The owners are now waiting with bated breath for the judgement which is to be pronounced by the Supreme Court on December 5. According to previous seasons, the owners and officials have various rounds of meeting to decide to the blueprint of the tournament, but owing to an indifferent scheme of things no such meetings have taken place this year. This promises to have a massive bearing on the season ahead.

Thus, not only the BCCI top brass but also the IPL Governing council are waiting for the judgement to be pronounced as the fate of the entire season will revolve around it.

The only meeting which has taken place between the governing council and the BCCI has resulted in charting out tentative dates for the auctions. Hence, their anxiety is quite justified. The ball is fairly and squarely in the court of the Supreme Court.

"We may run out of time if the SC judgement is delayed. Nothing has moved from the time the SC ordered BCCI to implement the Lodha panel's reforms. Generally, after three months of IPL, BCCI sends people to each of the teams to find out what is needed to be done in the following season. Then they take a feedback and discuss it in the GC and get back during the workshop. This process hasn't happened at all this year," a team official was quoted by the Times of India.

Not only are the officials worried, but this vague nature of events presents a very bleak picture before the sponsors too. The image of the IPL and BCCI is taking a hit in the market which is not good for the brand value of the league.

The BCCI however thus finds itself on a very slippery slope. Not only does the future rests with the Supreme Court, but conducting the league in a such a short notice will be a very tricky situation.

A lot of processes which go behind conducting the league is currently stalled and there are no immediate positive signs. The ongoing tussle has certainly had a bearing on the BCCI and it cannot proceed on anything unless it gets a green signal from the Apex Court.

Earlier the BCCI had claimed the England-India series would be in jeopardy due to the cash crunch, but the Supreme Court allowed cash to be disbursed for the series.

All eyes are thus set on the verdict which is set to be pronounced on December 5.

Follow your cricket stars and what they are upto in the latest cricket news and analysis at Sportskeeda Cricket.