Mumbai: More dates have been announced for the Indian Premier League 2022 along with the league matches. The 15th season of IPL will start from March 26. All league matches will be played in Mumbai and Pune. The decision was taken at the BCCI Governing Council meeting held in Mumbai on Thursday.
In a hectic meeting held virtually, it was decided that the IPL will be held in Maharashtra. Under which there will be 55 matches in Mumbai and 15 matches in Pune. Four stadiums have been identified for the league, which will include 20 at the Wankhede, 15 at the Brabourne Stadium, 20 at the DY Patil Stadium and finally 15 at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) ground in Gahunje.
IPL Chairman Brijesh Patel while talking to Cricbuzz has confirmed the news and revealed that the tournament will not be played in front of empty stands like the previous few editions, except for the UAE leg of IPL 2021. He said, IPL will start from March 26, full schedule will come soon. We will also have crowd but as per the policy of Maharashtra government. Whether it will be 25 or 50 percent of the capacity of the stadium will be decided by the directive of the government.
Team will practice at four places
The BCCI has also identified four grounds for the exercise, which the organizers were contemplating for a long time. Teams will be allotted time to practice at BKC Ground in Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai, Brabourne Stadium in South Mumbai, DY Patil Ground in Navi Mumbai and MCA Ground in Kandivali or Thane.
will not be played abroad
This is the first time that the BCCI has categorically stated that the league will not go abroad. There are plans to explore overseas venues like South Africa and Sri Lanka, but the better COVID situation in the country has encouraged the BCCI to organize the 10-team league in India itself. The exact number of days and the full schedule, as Patel said, will be released soon.