NEW DELHI: As the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 came to an end and Mumbai Indians lifted the trophy for the fifth time, the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) has already begun the preparations for the next edition of the tournament, according to a report in the Hindu. Also, in all likelihood, the board is likely to conduct a full auction before the next year’s tournament gets underway. The report further states that the BCCI officials might already be in touch with the franchises for the same. According to a well-placed source in the BCCI, there are also plans for the big auction, keeping in mind their plan to introduce a ninth team for the next season. The move might be to strike financial balance after the pandemic hit. In all likelihood, a corporate giant will go all out to bag the franchise based in Ahemdabad. Meanwhile, Sourav Ganguly had stated that the discussions for the IPL 2021 will take place in due course.