Star Sports urges BCCI to start IPL 2022 from March 26 onwards with a doubleheader

The IPL 2022 will feature ten teams vying to become the champions.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the official broadcasters of the Indian Premier League (IPL) Star Sports are discussing the start dates of the upcoming IPL 2022 season. While the BCCI is keen on starting on March 27, the broadcasters have another date in mind.

Cricbuzz has learnt from multiple IPL sources that Star has been insisting on a Saturday start as it wants to set the momentum for the league with a doubleheader on March 27, a Sunday, which, otherwise, would not be possible.

BCCI is also reportedly considering if the broadcaster's demand to advance the launch by a day should be acceded to. And is one of the reasons why the schedule for the IPL 2022 has not been released yet.

"We understand that a Saturday start helps the broadcaster to kick-start the league with a bang with three matches in the first weekend. A Sunday inauguration would not permit that. The BCCI and the broadcasters were in discussion over this and eventually, it could be on March 26," a franchise official said.

The new development has also delayed the plans as the BCCI had seemingly told the franchises that it would communicate with them about the venue and the schedule by February 20.

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BCCI has been discussing possibilities of holding the IPL 2022 at various venues considering the impact of the ongoing COVID pandemic has started to reduce countrywide. But it seems the board is keen to stick to playing the entire IPL 2022 in Maharashtra itself.

The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has identified the four grounds - the Wankhede, the Brabourne, DY Patil Stadium, and Pune ground - where the matches can be played. However, they are still working on providing 10 IPL teams with facilities to practice.

Meanwhile, in a recent communication to the commentators, Star has asked them to be ready from March 19 to June 7.

"At the onset, wanted to check with you on your availability for IPL 2022 on the world feed broadcast. So request you to please provide your availability not only for the tournament but probably say minus 8-10 days from the start date and plus five days from the end date to be safe, so effectively from 19th March 2022 to say June 7, 2022 (sic)," the mail says.  

(Cricbuzz report)