The last two league games of the Indian Premier League October 8 will be played simultaneously. According to the original itinerary, the Sunrisers Hyderabad were to play against the Mumbai Indians in Abu Dhabi in the afternoon (3:30 p.m. IST), followed by the Royal Challengers Bangalore facing the Delhi Capitals in the evening (7:30 p.m. IST) in Dubai. As it stands, both games will start at 7:30 p.m. IST.

The intention behind the step could be to prevent any team from gaining an unfair advantage, should the playoff qualifying situation shrink to the Net Execution Rate (NRR).

The decision was confirmed at an IPL board meeting held on Tuesday, September 28. Other key decisions made at the meeting include the appointment of two new IPL franchises that will participate from the next edition. The board confirmed that the teams will be announced on October 25, after which the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is expected to publish the tender for media rights for the 2023-2027 cycle.

The 2022 edition won’t be the first time the IPL has featured 10 teams, as the 2011 edition saw the addition of Pune Warriors and Kochi Tuskers Kerala (both now gone), with 70 league games played. , followed by four playoffs. In 2011, 10 teams were split into two groups, with each team playing 14 league games.

Each of the 10 teams have faced the other four in their group in four home and as many away matches, and the remaining teams in the other group twice, at home and away. All the meetings were decided by lot. The system was later scrapped, while the 2013 IPL was the last where more than eight teams participated in the tournament. The 2013 edition was a nine-team affair, with a total of 76 matches played.

The last BCCI tender for new IPL franchises was in 2015, when Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, which were suspended for two years from IPL, were replaced by Rising Pune Supergiants and Gujarat Lions.

The minimum bid price for upcoming franchises, meanwhile, has been set at 2000 crore INR, with cities like Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Guwahati and Cuttack being in contention.