Towards the end of today's pre-auction press conference, Lalit Modi, the Indian Premier League chairman, spoke at length about "expanding the IPL base" by staging games in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and, eventually, even Pakistan. Those countries would be considered part of the "catchment area" for the franchises nearest to them.
Comfortably numb after more than half an hour of exposure to the words "millions", "franchises" and "auction", I decided that a mischievous question was in order. Would he consider England as a catchment area? There was a huge Cheshire-cat grin on his face when he answered. "Oh, no," he said. "Nothing like that."
But the expression gave him away. With the England and Wales Cricket Board's own premier league plans now as dead as Tutankhamun, the day is not far off when an English ground will host an IPL game. With stars from Bollywood such as Shah Rukh Khan, Shilpa Shetty and Preity Zinta owning or part-owning franchises, it makes perfect sense for grounds such as Edgbaston and Headingley, in areas with a sizeable Asian population, to stage matches.
For the moment, though, Modi's thoughts are on Friday's auction. With its palm-fringed beaches and laid-back culture, this part of the world isn't one you normally associate with aggravation, but that was exactly what I encountered when I walked inside the gate of the Fort Aguada in Goa this afternoon. Local newspaper worthies, unhappy at having to show their credentials and sign a register, were having a go at staff deputed for the security detail, and the man in charge was given them the hairdryer back.
A fairly long uphill climb then took me to the Hermitage Hall, which will host the auction on Friday. Temporarily, it had been given over to the Modi press conference, with dozens of microphones and voice recorders jostling for space on the table. Outside, as we waited for Modi to arrive, the gossip flew thick and fast. Kevin Pietersen to Bangalore almost certainly a done deal. Mumbai, Mohali and perhaps Chennai jousting for Andrew Flintoff's signature. Owais Shah to Kolkata.
There was also plenty of talk about Michael Clarke's decision to pull out, one that clearly hadn't gone down well with Modi, who indicated that he wouldn't be considered for the 2010 season either. I wonder what he made of the Shane Harwood withdrawal later in the day, citing a reluctance to sign on for two seasons at the ripe old age of 34.
Only 17 spots are up for grabs, with Rajasthan (two), Kolkata and Bangalore also allowed to sign replacements for the Pakistani players that they'll be missing this season. Those deals, though, will have to be done outside the auction, and it gives hope even to those in the original longlist of 114 who didn't make the cut. So it may not be strictly dancing for Darren Gough after all, though the chances of him picking up a contract are about as remote as me getting beach time on Friday.
A total of $13.59m (£9m) can be spent, a long way short of last year's figure, which was in the region of $40m (£27m). Some teams face a real dilemma. The rules say that they must spend the $2m (£1.3m) available or forfeit what's left over. So, what does a team like Kolkata do, with only one slot left to fill? Do they throw the entire $1.21m (£800,000) at their disposal at one player? "No," says one of the team officials. "We'll pay what we feel is the appropriate price for a player. We certainly won't be spending $1.2m on someone valued at $200,000." So, there goes Luke Wright's chance of joining the millionaire club.
The big bucks will be spent on Pietersen, Flintoff and JP Duminy, but there are some hidden gems in there. One man is the leading wicket-taker in Twenty20 cricket and has the most man of the match awards as well. His reserve price is only $100,000 but Middlesex fans, those not blinded by the shocking pink, could tell you that Tyron Henderson is worth a good deal more than that.
