ILT20 2024 will begin on January 13th

On January 13, 2024, the International League T20 (ILT20) will launch its second season.

Less than a week after Gulf Giants were declared the inaugural winners in Dubai, the UAE-based T20 league confirmed the start date for the second season on Saturday.

Work has started on Season 2, which is scheduled to begin on Saturday, January 13, 2024, according to a statement from the DP World ILT20 2023. “The second season will follow the same 34-match format with four playoff rounds, including the championship game. In due course, the tournament schedule will be revealed.”

For a T20 league circuit where launch dates and fixture lists are disclosed closer to the time the league starts, the early revelation of the date is rare in and of itself. That also implies that the SA20, Big Bash League, and most likely Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) would face the same scheduling challenges as they had this season.

Together with the SA20, the ILT20 was one of two new men’s franchise leagues added to the schedule this year. This year, there was a lot of competition for players and calendar space due to a crossover of club owners between the two leagues and the IPL, with stars like England’s Moeen Ali signing contracts with both leagues.

In the end, both leagues played virtually simultaneously to the day. This situation is expected to repeat itself the next season because SA20 will start after the New Year’s Test, making a conflict all but certain. In the lead-up to the ILT20 this year, there had been discussions on how they might collaborate with other boards to reduce conflicts, including the possibility of holding the ILT20 before January.

In the end, Moeen emerged as a prime example of the conflicting demands of players’ schedules and the expanding options available to them. He played for Sharjah Warriors in the ILT20 while on international duty in South Africa, then traveled to Bangladesh for a few BPL matches. The Pakistan Super League started right after the BBL, which had a lot of overlap with these competitions.