BCCI secretary Jay Shah made the mega announcement of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 returning to India. The 2020 IPL along with the second leg of the 2021 IPL were held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) because of the COVID-19 situation in India.
Shah was speaking at Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) title celebrations in Chennai. CSK are celebrating their fourth title win with their fans in their home city. The event was delayed by a month due to skipper MS Dhoni’s involvement with Team India as ‘mentor’ for the 2021 T20 World Cup in UAE.
Addressing the CSK fans, Shah said, “I know you are all eagerly waiting to see CSK play at the Chepauk, the moment is not very far. The 15th season of the IPL will take place in India and it will be more exciting than ever with two new teams joining.”
He added, “We have a mega-auction coming up so it will be interesting to see what the new combination looks like.”
The announcement was met with a loud round of applause from the audience in the room. CSK have not played at the Chepauk stadium since the 2019 edition of the league.
While a few games of the 2021 season were held at the Chepauk Stadium in Chennai, CSK did not play there as the schedule was made in a way where no team plays any games at their respective home venues.
Ultimately, the league had to be suspended and eventually shifted to the UAE because of a COVID-19 outbreak across the league. The 2020 season took place in UAE from start to finish in a bio-bubble due to the pandemic.
With the two new teams entering, a mega-auction will take place prior to the league’s resumption. The existing eight teams are allowed to retain a maximum of four players from their current roaster.
