IPL 2019 is set to start earlier than usual - here's what we know about Indian Premier League season 12 so far.
IPL 2019 Schedule: The Indian Premier League’s (IPL) will return with its 12th season sooner than expected. IPL 2019 is set to start early keeping in mind the scheduled Lok Sabha elections this year. Indian Premier League (IPL) announced the first 17 fixtures of 12th edition of the T20 League on February 19. Defending champions Chennai Super Kings will take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in the opening match of IPL 2019 in Chennai on March 23. As per the current schedule, as many as 17 matches will be played from March 23 to April 5, with three double-header days on March 24, 30 and 31.
The schedule, which was announced on February 19, was only for the first two weeks of the tournament and "subject to the announcement of the Lok Sabha 2019 election dates."
Here's what we know and do not know about IPL season 12 so far:
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1. IPL 2019 Schedule for first 17 matches
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Indian Premier League (IPL) has announced the first 17 fixtures of 12th edition of the T20 League. Defending champions Chennai Super Kings will take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in the opening match of IPL 2019 in Chennai on March 23.
Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers will play five games in the said period while the remaining six teams will play four matches each. The Capitals are scheduled to play three home games in the first two weeks while the Royal Challengers will play three away games. The rest of the teams will play two home and two away games each.
| Date | Day | Time | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 23 | Saturday | Evening | CSK vs RCB | Chennai |
| March 24 | Sunday | Afternoon | KKR vs SRH | Kolkata |
| Evening | MI vs DC | Mumbai | ||
| March 25 | Monday | Evening | RR vs KXIP | Jaipur |
| March 26 | Tuesday | Evening | DC vs CSK | Delhi |
| March 27 | Wednesday | Evening | KKR vs KXIP | Kolkata |
| March 28 | Thursday | Evening | RCB vs MI | Bengaluru |
| March 29 | Friday | Evening | SRH vs RR | Hyderabad |
| March 30 | Saturday | Afternoon | KXIP vs MI | Mohali |
| Evening | DC vs KKR | Delhi | ||
| March 31 | Sunday | Afternoon | SRH vs RCB | Hyderabad |
| Evening | CSK vs RR | Chennai | ||
| April 1 | Monday | Evening | KXIP vs DC | Mohali |
| April 2 | Tuesday | Evening | RR vs RCB | Jaipur |
| April 3 | Wednesday | Evening | MI vs CSK | Mumbai |
| April 4 | Thursday | Evening | DC vs SRH | Delhi |
| April 5 | Friday | Evening | RCB vs KKR | Bengaluru |
2. IPL 2019 to be played in India
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We had earlier learnt that IPL 2019 will not be shifted out of India despite a possible clash with India's general elections, which are expected to take place between April and May. IPL was held outside India in 2009 and the first half of the 2014 edition was held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) owing to the federal elections on both the occasions. (Image: AFP)
3. IPL Auction and Teams
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We also know what the teams look like after the 2019 IPL Player Auction held on December 18 in Jaipur. Unheralded architect-turned-cricketer Varun Chakravarthy fetched a sensational bid of Rs 8.4 crore, more than 40 times his base price, the same as Jaydev Unadkat. Veteran Yuvraj Singh was snapped by Mumbai Indians for just Rs 2 crore. (Image: @IPL)
For every complete squads and player bought at IPL 2019 Auction by each team, click here.
4. IPL 2019 Start date
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The 12th edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) will be played from March 23, 2019. IPL 2018 had begun on April 7 and the final, which was won by the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), was held on May 27. (Image: Hemant Padalkar/DNA)
5. IPL 2019 Final date and schedule
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We don't know yet- BCCI has not annonced the date for IPL 2019 final as well as schedule of the tournament so far. With the 2019 World Cup starting on May 30 and the new BCCI constitution mandating at least 15-day window between the IPL and India's next international fixture, it very likely that the final will be played on or around May 12, 2019. (Image: AFP)
6. IPL Venues
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It was reported that about 20 venues across the country have been short-listed to the host IPL 2019 matches. According to an insider, venues like Pune, Lucknow, Kanpur, Thiruvananthapuram, Visakhapatnam, Ranchi, Cuttack, Rajkot, Guwahati, Raipur, Indore, and Dharamsala are likely to host IPL games apart from the regular cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Mohali, Jaipur, and Hyderabad.
However, so far, BCCI has kept the matches at the usual home venues of the teams. (Image: DNA)
7. Home and Away or Caravan format
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There were many reports suggesting that the IPL 2019 will not be played in the traditional home and away format. Many reports suggested that IPL this year may be played in a 'caravan' format covering many cities. However, the schedule of first 17 matches show that BCCI has kept to the traditional home and away format. It seems, BCCI plan involving multiple cities and flexible dates to ensure “no clash” with elections in any particular city will be kept as a back up plan. (Image: @IPL)
