Explained | How the new 10-team IPL format works

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The dates for the Indian Premier League are all but official, with reports flying in the Indian media that the coveted tournament will begin on March 26, 2022. A 10-team affair this season, IPL will take a different route than usual dividing the teams into two groups.

The IPL media advisory suggests that each team will play the same number of matches (14) as it did in the earlier editions of the group stage. This got netizens scratching their heads as to how it was possible, and what could possibly be the format of this edition.

While it is not rocket science, IPL has come up with a little complex method for its 2022 edition to accommodate the league in just 74 matches, spread across two months.

Here is a step by step guideline of how the format works

  • 10 teams are divided into 2 groups of five. 

For example, the first group might house MI, KKR, RR, DC and LSG, while the other one will have the remaining 5 - CSK, SRH, RCB, PBKS, GT.

  • Teams will play 2 games against opponents of their own group. Play 2 games against one opponent of the other group and then play 1 game against the remaining 4 opponents in the other group.
  • Teams will play 14 games in their group stage before moving into the playoffs.
  • The league phase will have 70 games and playoffs will have 4 games.



While the format is not ideal and one would like the teams to play each other twice before heading into the playoffs phase of the tournament, this does allow the IPL to make the best of the window granted in the ICC FTP calendar.

The tournament is scheduled to begin on Saturday, 26 March and will run till May 29. Maharashtra will host majority part of the tournament, with 70 matches divided in four of its stadiums - DY Patil, Wankhede, Brabourne and MCA Stadium in Pune. The venue for the playoffs phase has not been decided yet, but if situation permits, the final phase of the tournament could possibly be shifted to Ahmedabad.

The 2022 edition will be a big one for IPL. It is being speculated that the fans have seen the last of mega-auctions and IPL might ask their respective franchises to shift to a self-sustaining model while keeping the smaller auctions alive.




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