IPL to return with its biggest 84-match edition:Reintroduces double round-robin format, what is it and how’ll it help teams?

Exactly 10 days later, that is, on the evening of March 28, when the coin is tossed for the toss at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, not just a tournament, but a ‘festival’ will begin in India. The 19th season of the IPL is coming before us in its grandest and longest avatar yet. This season is different from the history of the last 18 years. This time, a total of 84 matches will be played between 10 teams, making it the biggest season ever. Previously, a maximum of 74 matches were played. The flurry of fours and sixes will be seen for 64 days across 13 different venues nationwide among 10 teams. All 10 teams have intensified their preparations for the new season, and players are trying to get into match mode through pre-season training camps. The IPL is starting exactly 20 days after the World Cup ends. In such a situation, the BCCI and IPL franchises are also jointly monitoring the workload of several key players. Also Read: ‘Like Virat Kohli admired Sachin Tendulkar ‘: Ramit Tandon on squash culture in India, sets sights on LA 2028 Olympics Lucknow’s pacers trained in Africa; Punjab’s camp was in Abu Dhabi Chennai’s captain Ruturaj, along with Dhoni and several other players, have started practice at the High-Performance Centre located in Navalur from March 1. Meanwhile, RCB started its camp from February 10, which included players like Jitesh, Venkatesh Iyer, and Suyash Sharma. Captain Shubman and Sai Sudarshan were part of Gujarat’s camp held in Nathdwara from February 16. The team had also held a camp in January. Punjab Kings held a camp in Abu Dhabi from February 8-14. The team’s second camp has also started. Lucknow had sent its fast bowlers to Durban. Now the main camp has started in Lucknow. Sunrisers Hyderabad, Mumbai, Rajasthan, KKR, and Delhi’s camps have also started. ‘Big-3’s mission: Dhoni, Rohit, Kohli might be seen playing together for the last time In the 19-year journey of IPL, three faces made this league a ‘cult’. These are MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. This might be the last season when all three are seen playing together. MS Dhoni’s ‘Impact’ role at Chennai Super Kings Chennai’s ‘Thala’ started practice a few weeks ago at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. It is being discussed that at the age of 44, this might be Dhoni’s farewell season. But, looking at his fitness and long sixes, it seems he can still beat any young player. According to franchise sources, this time, he might be seen more as an ‘Impact Player’. Rohit’s intense net training session Rohit Sharma of the Mumbai Indians has joined the camp, and his aggressive intent is visible in the nets during practice. He practised special pull shots and big shots. According to sources, he had lost 11 kg before the league. Experts are debating whether he should play as a full-time batter instead of an ‘Impact Player’. Kohli under pressure of defending title RCB has changed its ‘luck’ by winning its first title in 2025. Now they are not underdogs, but every team wants to defeat them. Additionally, Virat Kohli faces the challenge of defending the title for the first time. He had started training for the new season even before coming to India. Kohli has arrived in India and will soon join the camp. Dual venues for 3 teams: RR will also play in Guwahati, PBKS in Dharamshala, and RCB in Raipur This time, the IPL is not limited to 10 cities. The board has assigned hosting duties to 13 cities this time. To capitalise on the cricket craze in the North-East, Rajasthan will play some of its matches in Guwahati, in addition to Jaipur. Also Read: Vinicius Jr notches brace to lead Real Madrid to QF, Sporting CP’s historic comeback ends Bodø/Glimt’s UCL run Assam’s Riyan Parag’s captaincy has filled the fans there with new enthusiasm this time. Meanwhile, Punjab Kings’ matches will also be held in Dharamshala, in addition to New Chandigarh. Royal Challengers Bengaluru has chosen Raipur, the capital of Chhattisgarh, as its ‘second home’. KKR’s Harshit might be out; RCB-Hyderabad also suffer a setback KKR fast bowler Harshit Rana might be out for the entire season or most of it due to knee surgery. Harshit sustained this injury during a warm-up match against South Africa before the T20 World Cup. Subsequently, he underwent surgery in February and is currently undergoing rehab. Additionally, RCB’s Josh Hazlewood and Hyderabad’s Pat Cummins are also likely to miss the initial matches. Both Australian pacers are recovering from injuries. In Cummins’ absence, Ishan Kishan might get the captaincy. Return of the four-year-old format, double round-robin matches again In the past few years, teams were divided into groups, but this time the tournament is returning to its ‘original’ and most fair format, the double round-robin. This means that every team will face every other team twice (home and away). This format is returning to the IPL after four years. This is special because no team will get the advantage of an ‘easy group’ in the points table. To reach the playoffs, a team will have to prove its strength against every opponent. AI Broadcasting’s introduction: The board is working on smart pitch technique AI will be used on a large scale in broadcasting. Fans will be able to choose ‘hyper-personalised’ camera angles. If they wish, they can focus only on their favourite player throughout the match. Smart balls and pitches could be used. Kookaburra had already tested a smart ball, which contains an electronic chip. There is talk that BCCI is working on smart pitch technology. As per the info, there are sensors beneath the pitch surface which send data on moisture and bounce to the broadcaster. The Emirates Board had trialled this a while ago.