By Razeen Gutta
The Indian Premier League (IPL) returns to its original home and away format with the same buzz of excitement across the cricketing globe. And this time, we even have some new rules to ensure enhanced tactical battles on the pitch.
The defending champions Gujarat Titans will take to the pitch in Ahmedabad with MS Dhoni and Chennai Super Kings in town when the tournament kicks off on Friday.
As a side just one season old, Hardik Pandya and David Miller’s Titans will have renewed hope as they play seven home games for the very first time.
The Lucknow Super Giants will have a similar experience as they begin their campaign with a home game against the Delhi Capitals on Saturday.
On the other end of the spectrum lay Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore. Despite making the Chinnaswamy Stadium a fortress over the past 15 years, with arguably the best fans in the league, RCB have failed to bring home an IPL trophy.
The spectators will cross thumbs as they usually do with six of their seven home games being played in the April leg of the two-month tournament. It begins for Bangalore on Sunday, with Mumbai Indians coming to town.
The new season comes along with some tweaks to the classic T20 rule book, with organisers hoping to add a strategic element to cricket’s short format.
Teams will be announced following the coin toss and, for the first time ever, players will be able to review wide and no balls which they believe to be incorrectly called by the on-field umpires.
The introduction of the Impact Player rule is the one that has got people talking the most, though.
The rule allows teams to make a substitution based on the way the game is going for them, with specialist players being able to come on to bat or bowl a full amount of overs.
India captain Rohit Sharma and former Proteas boss Mark Boucher were both all praise for the new rules.
“It’s interesting to have new innovations coming into the game,” Sharma said in a press conference.
“Only time will tell what happens and how the team will cope with this new rule, but I like the idea of an impact player coming in and changing your team after the toss,” the Mumbai Indians skipper added.
Boucher, who has now joined Mumbai as their new coach, called the new rules “a great innovation”.
“We are going to have to learn. I have no problem with the changing of the teams after the toss. It is going to be a level playing field after the toss, if you do lose the toss. Especially in India, where there is the dew factor. So you just have to adjust,” he said.
“If say this year we are going to have an impact player, and next year we are going to change the rule of the toss, it might have been a little bit different. But both rules have changed now, and it is going to have an impact.”
Pictured above: Faf du Plessis
Image source: @RCBTweets
