IPL 2022 will go through a tremendous change in its format as it is set to abandon the traditional home and away setup of fixtures. BCCI will instead bring back the IPL 2011 format where two groups of five teams competed. A BCCI official has confirmed this news.
Even though the ten teams will be placed into two separate groups, they will still have to play the bare minimum of 14 games each over a 50 day period. As a result, all the teams have to play the same amount of matches despite the format change.
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Why is BCCI changing it’s successful format of IPL that has worked over the years?
There is a major reason why BCCI is changing this successful IPL format that was followed for several years from next season onwards. With the addition of two new teams, it would mean that the next edition of IPL will have 10 teams. Consequently, the number of fixtures would gradually increase and result in a total of 94 matches. Hence players would face fatigue and there will be a great risk of players getting injured as they would barely get a significant break.
In addition to that, the tournament would at least take 74 days to adjust the entire schedule. Which the ICC and other cricketing boards would be reluctant to allow players to participate for such an extended period. As a result, considering all the conditions BCCI is working towards a plan that will ensure a smooth transition.
A BCCI official has given his thoughts in an interview about this change. “Ideally we do want to have home and away format but playing 94 matches during a season is not feasible. It will take over 70 days and will put a lot of strain on the players. There will be a change in format for sure. We haven’t decided on it yet and we already have a format for 10-team. But we will take a final call after discussing with all the stakeholders at a later stage.”
What is the new format that BCCI is planning to implement from IPL 2022?
Earlier in the home and away format all the teams play against each other in a round-robin format. However, the next edition of IPL will be played in two different groups consisting of five teams each. Let’s name the two groups- Group A and Group B to simplify.
Every team from Group A will play against the four teams in their group in a home and away format. Then they will play against four teams in Group B once and will face the remaining team twice. Coming to the playoffs, there won’t be any changes as IPL will adapt its original playoff format.
Hence this format of two groups of five teams each will most likely ensure a smooth sailing tournament and is set to grab the attention of fans throughout the tournament.
