The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 will start on March 26 and the final will be played on May 29. The decision was taken at the IPL Governing Council meeting on Thursday. (More Cricket News)
During the virtual meet, it was also decided that the league stage of the cash-rich T20 tournament, featuring 70 matches, will be staged in Maharashtra, at four venues in Mumbai and Pune.
And the venues are -- Wankhede Stadium (20 matches), Brabourne Stadium (15) and DY Patil Stadium (20) in Mumbai, and Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) ground (15) in Pune.
The venue option for the four playoffs are being kept open for the time being. The fixtures can be expected as early as the first week of March.
"The IPL will kick off on March 26, the full schedule will come soon. We will also have crowds but as per the policy of the Maharashtra government. Whether it will be 25 or 50 per cent of the stadium capacity will be decided by the government instruction," Cricbuzz reported quoting IPL chairman Brijesh Patel.
The IPL will become a ten-team affair from this season with two new teams -- Lucknow Supergiants and Gujarat Titans -- joining the bandwagon.
Format
"The 15th edition of the Indian Premier League will be played in a bio-secure environment at a single hub to avoid air travel which is considered as a major threat for the spread of COVID-19 infection, thereby affecting the players and the League/matches," said BCCI in a release on Friday.
All teams will play four matches each at Wankhede Stadium and DY Patil Stadium, and three matches each at Brabourne Stadium and MCA ground.
The 10 teams will play a total of 14 league matches (designated seven home matches and seven away matches), followed by the four playoff matches.
Each team will play five teams twice and the remaining four teams only once (two home and two away).
Groups
The release further added that "To decide on the above, teams have been assigned in two virtual groups based on the number of IPL Championships won followed by the number of Final matches played by the respective teams."
This is like following the seeding system according to their past achievements. The most successful side, Mumbai Indians have been given the top billing, followed by Chennai Super Kings. For the uninitiated, this is what the IPL employed in the 2011 edition when Pune Warriors India and Kochi Tuskers Kerala were in the league.
Here's what the breakdown looks like:
1. Mumbai Indians - won 5 - finals 6
2. Chennai Super Kings - won 4 - finals 9
3. Kolkata Knight Riders - won 2 - finals 3
4. Sunrisers Hyderabad - won 1 - finals 2
5. Rajasthan Royals - won 1 - finals 1
6. Royal Challengers Bangalore - won 0 - finals 3
7. Delhi Capitals - won 0 - finals 1
8. Punjab Kings - won 0 - finals 0
9. Lucknow Super Giants - won 0 - finals 0
10. Gujarat Titans - won 0 - finals 0
So, the groups look like this:
Group A: MI, KKR, RR, DC, LSG
Group B: CSK, SHR, RCB, PBKS, GT
For Example: In Group A, Mumbai Indians will play two matches each against Kolkata Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals, Lucknow Super Giants. MI will also play two matches against CSK and one match each against other teams in Group B.
Similarly, in Group B, Royal Challengers Bangalore will play two matches against Chennai Super Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans. RCB will also play two matches against RR and one match each against other teams in Group A.
Fan Attendance
It's also reported that around 40 percent crowd will be allowed at the start.
"Spectators will be allowed as per guidelines set by the Maharashtra government and to start with, it will be 40 percent. If the COVID situation remains under control and cases decline, it might be full house at the business end," PTI reported quoting a source.
At the recent IPL 2022 mega auction, the ten franchises spent more than INR 551 crore on some 200 players to complete their respective teams.
It's worth noting that the entirety of the tournament in the 2020 edition was held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The 2021 edition in India was initially suspended after 31 matches following COVID-19 cases within the bio bubbles. The Indian cricket board (BCCI) then moved IPL to the UAE in September and October 2021.
Chennai Super Kings are the defending champions.
Meanwhile, the IPL Governing Council also contemplated the revival of Women's version of IPL, the T20 Challenge. It was last played in 2020 with three teams -- Supernovas, Velocity and Trailblazers -- competing in it.
