The BCCI has announced the schedule for the 10th edition of the Indian Premier League. The league will have eight teams, will begin on the 5th of April and end on the 21st of May.
This will be the final season for the two new franchises – Rising Pune Supergiant and Gujarat Lions – as they would come to the end of their two-year deal. That could also mean that the currently suspended Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals could make a comeback next season.
The first match this season will be played between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bangalore in Hyderabad.
This year the league will be under added scrutiny as it will played in the wake of the Supreme Court clipping the wings of the BCCI; the apex court ousted president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke for not complying with their orders. The board is now under the charge of a four-member panel appointed by the Supreme Court, which is led by former CAG Vinod Rai.
Dharamsala loses out as one of the grounds and that can be attributed to the absence of Anurag Thakur from the top brass. Indore makes its entry as one of the venues and it gets to host a few of the Kings XI Punjab matches. After receiving disappointing crowds in all of the previous seasons, the IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali will host only four matches of Punjab.
The inaugural match of the 10th edition of the tournament will be a repeat of IPL 2016 final, with Sunrisers Hyderabad taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad. The final will take place at the same venue on May 21.
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