Karnataka Premier League
Karnataka Premier League: participating teams
Karnataka Premier League (Maharaja Trophy T20): Twenty20 cricket in India
The Karnataka Premier League is a professional cricket tournament featuring seven well-known teams. The games are held in a format with a limited number of overs (Twenty20). This means that one game consists of 2 innings, where 20 overs are played in each. The Karnataka State Cricket Association manages the league. The championship appeared in 2009 and is currently one of the most popular championships in India. The largest number of titles on account of the Bijapur Bulls team. It became the champion in 2016 and 2019. Get acquainted with a brief overview of the Karnataka Premier League.
Karnataka Premier League – debut season
Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) is a local sports body responsible for cricket in the state of Karnataka (population 61 million people, until 1973 it was called Mysore). The Association was formed in 1933. It is a full member of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Due to this, KSCA has the right to field a cricket club for various national cricket championships.
The BCCI is the national Cricket Council, which is responsible for the sport throughout the country. The Council has been organizing and conducting popular domestic cricket competitions since 1928.
With the consent of the BCCI, the Karnataka State Cricket Association decided to create its own domestic professional league in 2009. The championship participants are formed sports teams sponsored by local companies, enterprises, factories and plants.
Twelve clubs applied for the debut draw. However, the limit of the championship was eight teams. To select the required amount, an auction was held, the winners of which were the following teams:
- Bangalore Brigadiers – a bet of $ 1.0 million;
- Rockstars* – a bet of $ 1.0 million;
- Mangalore United – a bet of $ 590 thousand;
- Belagavi Panthers – a bet of $ 530 thousand;
- Shamanur Davangere Diamonds – a bet of $ 520 thousand;
- Bijapur Bulls – a bet of $ 490 thousand;
- Mysuru Warriors – a bet of $ 460 thousand;
- Namma Shivamogga* – a bet of $ 460 thousand.
*For a number of reasons, two teams were unable to play in the debut season. They were replaced by the collectives Provident Bangalore and Malnad Gladiators.
The first season took place in September 2009. The league’s main sponsor was a real estate sales company in India – Mantri Developers (a 5-year contract).
The competition was held in two rounds – a group round and a playoff round. The playoffs began with the 1/2 final stage, where the top 4 clubs got into. The debut winner of the Karnataka Premier League was the Provident Bangalore team, which beat Belagavi Panthers in the final with an advantage of 5 wickets.
Karnataka Premier League – all results and other information about KPL
With each season, the teams at KPL changed. Some were unable to compete with other clubs, and some simply ceased to exist. Karnataka Premier League was not held in the period from 2011 to 2014.
In the last season (2019-2020), seven teams competed. Let’s make a table of champions for the entire history of the championship:
| Season | Numver of clubs | Winner | 2nd place |
| 2009-2010 | 8 | Provident Bangalore | Belagavi Panthers |
| 2010-2011 | 8 | Mangalore United | Provident Bangalore |
| 2014-2015 | 7 | Mysore Warriors | Belagavi Panthers |
| 2015-2016 | 8 | Bijapur Bulls | Hubli Tigers |
| 2016-2017 | 8 | Bellary Tuskers | Hubli Tigers |
| 2017-2018 | 7 | Belagavi Panthers | Bijapur Bulls |
| 2018-2019 | 7 | Bijapur Bulls | Bengaluru Blasters |
| 2019-2020 | 7 | Hubli Tigers | Bellary Tuskers |
After a 5-year contract with Mantri Developers, the next main sponsor was an Indian smartphone manufacturing company – Karbonn Mobiles. Karbonn is the first Android One smartphone sold in the UK. Today, the title sponsor is the Redmi brand, owned by the Chinese company Xiaomi.
By the way, did you know that in 2017, for the first time in India, KPL used cameras with a 360-degree view?
The 2020-2021 season was canceled due to the spread of COVID-19. We hope that in the near future the situation will change and we will again watch the highlights of the Karnataka Premier League.
