New Timings Announced for IPL Playoffs
What's the story?
Rajeev Shukla, the chairman of the Indian Premier League, has confirmed that the playoffs will begin at 7 pm instead of 8 pm. He confirmed the news to News 18.
“The IPL is what it is because of its fans and the tournament has over the years been followed avidly both on the ground and on television at homes. So, keeping the interest of the fans in mind, it was decided that the play-off games and the final will start an hour earlier. So, instead of the 8pm start, the games will start at 7pm.
“It gets difficult not only for those at the stadium, but also for those watching on television as students and office-goers also need to get back to their respective stuff next morning and it helps if the game starts an hour earlier,” he explained.
In case you didn't know...
All the matches since the beginning of the tournament have been starting at 8 pm. Over the years, the playoffs also began at the same time, however, there were a lot of logistical problems which the fans were facing.
With a 7 pm start, the matches would end by around 10:30 pm, instead of the usual 11:30 pm.
The details
Initially, the playoffs were supposed to take place at the MCA stadium in Pune. However, since Chennai's home matches were shifted to Pune, the Governing Council decided to switch the venue for the playoffs to the historic Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
The final will take place at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on May 27.
Author's take
It is a good decision by the Governing Council to change the timings of the matches during the playoffs. Fans have faced issues getting back home and there have been numerous logistical problems due to the time at which the matches end.
If the time change works well, we might just see the matches begin at 7 pm next year.