The wait for the rest of the IPL schedule is finally over as the board of control for cricket in India has released the residual schedule.
The best thing about the schedule is that no matches of the IPL 2024 will be played abroad. All 74 matches have been scheduled in India, with the business end of the competition being played in Ahmedabad and Chennai.
While Qualifier 1 and Eliminator will be held at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Motera on May 21 and 22, Qualifier 2 and the final will be played at the Chepauk in Chennai on May 24 and 26.
The BCCI has prepared a program with the 22nd game starting straightaway on Monday, April 8. Like the first part, the second part also starts with a game involving the Chennai Super Kings. The defending champions will play the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Chepauk on April 8. It will be a night game.
The challenge before the BCCI was the security concerns in view of the general elections in the country, which will be held across the length and breadth of India in seven phases from April 19 to June 1, with the counting scheduled for June 4. The BCCI has done well to avoid overlaps with the election dates in particular centers in the seven phases while also commendably maintaining the home and away format.
According to the schedule, a couple of games are scheduled at Dharamsala, a traditional second center of Punjab Kings, and the venue will host a couple of home games of the Punjab franchise on May 5 (versus Chennai Super Kings, a day game) and May 9 (versus Royal Challengers Bengaluru, a night game).
There are also two games in Guwahati, the Rajasthan Royals' preferred second base. They play the Punjab Kings on May 15 and the Kolkata Knight Riders on May 19. Incidentally, the RR-KKR game is the last match of the league phase.