IPL 2023: BCCI announces schedule for 16th edition
The 16th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is set to commence on March 31 after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the official schedule of IPL 2023 on Friday evening. The upcoming edition will see ten participating franchises fight it out for the coveted IPL trophy in a 74-match season with defending champions Gujarat Titans taking on the Chennai Super Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium in the curtain raiser on March 31.
Gujarat Titans, who won the title in their first attempt last year, will be eyeing to defend their crown in the upcoming edition. However, they will face a stern test this time around with big teams such as Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings looking to make amends for their woeful season after a strong IPL mini-auction.
Home-Away format returns
Unlike the last edition, which saw the matches played across just four Indian cities due to the pandemic, the upcoming editions will see the action taking place all across the country, just like in the pre-pandemic era. Following the conclusion of the 2022 edition of the tournament, an intense bidding war took place for the media rights for 2023-2027 in June 2022.
The media rights were sold for a staggering INR 48,390 crore, making the IPL the second most-valued sporting event in the world after the NFL. While The Walt Disney Company India-owned Star continued its association with the competition after bagging the television rights for the Indian subcontinent for INR 23,575 crore, Viacom18 surprised a fair few after clinching the digital rights for INR 23,758 crore.
Ahead of the 16th edition of the tournament, the IPL 2023 mini auction saw the team spend a collective amount of INR 167 crore on a total of 80 players. England’s Sam Curran became the most expensive player in the history of the competition after Punjab Kings acquired his services for INR 18.50 crore. The BCCI has also introduced ‘Impact Player Rule’ ahead of the upcoming edition, which could be a game changer in the tournament.
