NEW DELHI: The much-anticipated Indian Premier League (IPL) is set to kick off on
March 22
, as confirmed by league chairman
Arun Dhumal
on Tuesday.
Despite the upcoming general elections, the tournament will take place entirely in India.
The schedule for the 17th edition of the IPL has not been announced yet due to the elections, which are expected to be held in April and May.
Dhumal mentioned that initially, only the schedule for the first 15 days will be released, and the rest of the games will be decided after the announcement of the election dates.
"We are looking at a March 22 start for the tournament. We are working closely with the government agencies and we will first release the initial schedule. The entire tournament will be held in India," Dhumal told PTI.
"The
Lok Sabha polls
are anticipated to have their dates announced early next month," Dhumal stated.
The IPL was held entirely overseas only once, in 2009, in South Africa. In 2014, a portion of the tournament was held in the UAE due to the elections. However, in 2019, the IPL took place in India despite the elections.
The final of the IPL is likely to be held on May 26, just before the T20 World Cup begins. India's first World Cup match will be against Ireland in New York on June 5.
The tournament will start with a clash between the USA and Canada on June 1. The IPL opener will follow the tradition of being played between the previous year's finalists, with the Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans taking the field.
The players' auction for the 2024 season took place in December last year, with Australian pacer
Mitchell Starc
becoming the most expensive player in IPL history after being bought by the Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs 24.75 crore.
(With PTI inputs)
English (US) ·