Juhi Chawla Backs Lalit Modi's Big IPL Demand; Is A Schedule Shake-Up Coming?

KKR co-owner Juhi Chawla backs Lalit Modi's January IPL proposal as the BCCI explores an earlier schedule for the 2027 season.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) co-owner Juhi Chawla has joined former Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Lalit Modi in calling for a change to the tournament's traditional schedule. Chawla has backed Modi's suggestion of staging the competition in January instead of the usual March-May window, citing the difficult playing conditions during India's peak summer months.

The proposal has brought the IPL calendar back into focus, with Modi arguing that the tournament has grown enough to influence the international cricket schedule rather than remain restricted by it. Chawla echoed that view in a response on social media, questioning why the world's biggest T20 league should be played in extreme heat.Juhi Chawla Backs Lalit Modi's January IPL Proposal

THE IPL DOES NOT NEED A WINDOW. IT CREATES ITS OWN. By Lalit Modi | Founder, Indian Premier League There seems to be a fundamental misunderstanding about the IPL and the international cricket calendar. A lot of cricket journalists and Cricket Administrators have reached out to me either scared or giving me Gyan on value chain. I thought it best I tell my views bluntly The IPL does not need the ICC to give it a window. The IPL is a domestic tournament owned and operated by the BCCI. The BCCI can decide when to stage it. Of course, international commitments and player releases must be managed, but that is entirely different from seeking permission to exist in a particular part of the calendar.

And here is the bigger point. The IPL is no longer a tournament trying to find its place in world cricket. World cricket must recognise the place the IPL has already earned. I know this better than most. I created the IPL when many believed it would never work. In 2008, India's movie, television and entertainment industries initially thought they could compete with it. They learnt very quickly what happens when the IPL captures the attention of a nation. Film releases were postponed, prime-time television was disrupted and entertainment schedules were rewritten. The IPL didn't ask Bollywood for a window.

Bollywood adjusted to the IPL. Now imagine the IPL choosing its own optimal calendar. Others may try to counter-programme it. They are free to do so. But commercial reality is a very unforgiving umpire. The world's leading cricketers understand where the financial opportunities are. For many international players, an IPL contract can represent a substantial proportion of their annual cricket earnings. That economic gravity is not going away. The IPL has become to cricket what the English Premier League is to football: a global sporting and commercial powerhouse with the ability to shape the wider ecosystem.

And like the EPL, its strength comes from the product, the clubs, the supporters, the talent and the commercial model -- not from asking competing competitions to clear the calendar. Why I don't support reviving the Champions League T20 I was involved in creating the original Champions League concept. It made commercial sense in its time. But the world has changed. Today, IPL franchise ownership groups have expanded across several international T20 leagues. The prospect of teams under common ownership competing against each other creates obvious governance and conflict-of-interest questions. More importantly, why create another tournament competing for the same players, broadcasters, sponsors and increasingly stretched cricket calendar?

We don't need another competition. We need to strengthen the competition that already works. My proposal is to seriously examine moving the IPL from the increasingly punishing April-May heat, with two alternatives: a January start or a carefully structured October-April competition calendar. The objective should be a commercially sustainable expansion, better playing conditions, more valuable broadcasting inventory and a stronger long-term economic foundation for Indian cricket. The BCCI has the asset. It has the audience. It has the commercial strength. It needs the confidence to use them. The ICC and other cricket boards should recognise the economic reality and work constructively around it.

The IPL cannot be expected to subsidise an outdated global calendar indefinitely. The writing has been on the wall. Unfortunately, some people only read it when it appears on a balance sheet. You cannot run tomorrow's cricket on yesterday's economics. And remember one thing: The IPL was never built to follow the market. It was built to change the market. Lalit Modi Founder, Indian Premier League @IPL #cricket #bcci

-- Lalit Kumar Modi (@LalitKModi) November 9, 2026

Responding to Modi's suggestion on X, Chawla said the IPL had established itself as a major tournament and should have greater influence over the cricket calendar.

"The IPL no longer needs to find its place in the cricket calendar. It has earned the right to influence it. So why keep playing the biggest cricket tournament on the planet in the harshest heat? And if the calendar is being reconsidered, why not January instead of April-May?" she wrote.

The IPL no longer needs to find its place in the cricket calendar. It has earned the right to influence it. So why keep playing the biggest cricket tournament on the planet in the harshest heat? And if the calendar is being reconsidered, why not January instead of April-May? Better conditions. Better cricket. A better experience for everyone overall! The IPL has evolved. Perhaps its calendar should too now! #JustAThought

-- Juhi Chawla Mehta (@iam_juhi) November 9, 2026

Chawla also highlighted the potential benefits of changing the tournament's timing, adding, "Better conditions. Better cricket. A better experience for everyone overall! The IPL has evolved. Perhaps its calendar should too now!"

Modi, one of the key figures behind the creation of the IPL, had recently urged the BCCI to reconsider the tournament's existing window. His proposal centres on moving the competition to January, arguing that its commercial standing means it need not depend on a dedicated gap in the international cricket calendar.

BCCI Considering Earlier IPL 2027 Schedule

While Chawla has backed a January start, the BCCI's publicly discussed plans so far point towards a more modest adjustment. Board secretary Devajit Saikia had said in June that the BCCI and IPL Governing Council were exploring an earlier start to avoid extreme heat and the possibility of pre-monsoon showers towards the end of the tournament.

Saikia said the board was examining a window that could see IPL 2027 begin around March 10 and conclude by May 15. He also confirmed that former India fast bowler Abey Kuruvilla, the BCCI's general manager for games development, had been asked to explore possible scheduling windows.

The BCCI's concerns extend to both players and spectators, with high temperatures making afternoon conditions particularly difficult at several venues. The possibility of rain disrupting matches in the latter half of May is another factor behind the proposed change.

Will IPL Move To January From 2027?

A January IPL remains a proposal at this stage, and the BCCI has not announced any decision to shift the tournament to that month. Its earlier discussions have focused on bringing the competition forward by a couple of weeks and completing it before the middle of May.

Whether the board will consider a more substantial calendar change following Modi's suggestion and Chawla's backing remains to be seen. For now, the schedule for the 2027 season has not been officially announced.