Chennai: The 15th edition of IPL will be held in India next year, BCCI secretary Jay Shah stated on Saturday.
IPL-13 had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was ultimately played in the UAE from September to November 2020, while IPL-14 was halted midway in India due to the second wave and had to be completed in the UAE in September-October this year.
Speaking at Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) title celebrations in Chennai, Shah assured CSK fans who are keen to see Mahindra Singh Dhoni in action at home ground.
CSK won the 14th edition of IPL last month, beating Kolkata Knight Riders in the final at Dubai. It was the Dhoni-led Chennai team’s fourth IPL title. Celebrations had to be put back by a month because of Dhoni’s involvement with Team India as mentor for the T20 World Cup.
“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,” Shah said.
The BCCI has inducted two franchises, which will be based in Ahmedabad and Lucknow, taking the team strength of the popular T20 league to 10 from 2022.
Though Dhoni is done with all forms of international cricket, he has hinted there could be some more cricket left in him in CSK colours.
Dhoni hopes to play last T20 game in Chennai:
On Saturday, Dhoni said that his last T20 game will be played in Chennai but he doesn’t know whether it will be “next year or in five years’ time.”
Speaking in the presence of former India captain Kapil Dev and Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin, Dhoni said: “I have always planned my cricket. The last game I played was in Ranchi. The last home game in ODI was at my hometown in Ranchi. So, hopefully, my last T20 will be in Chennai. Whether it’s next year or in 5 years’ time, we don’t really know.”
