The 15th edition of the IPL is all set to be a bigger carnival with two new franchises in the block. With the mega auction a few weeks away, the BCCI has called on the two franchises to announce their list of draft picks by January 22. The meeting of the IPL governing council handed over the formal clearances to the Lucknow and Ahmedabad franchises.
The 8 regular IPL sides have previously declared their list of retentions in December 2021. On January 22, when the draft picks will be released by the new franchises, the scene ahead of the auction will become more clear to the fans.
“Ahmedabad and Lucknow franchises have been given January 22 as the deadline to submit the list of their draft picks,”IPL chairman Brijesh Patel confirmed.
Auction to be held in Bengaluru in February
The RPSG owned Lucknow franchise has started an exciting campaign where they have asked their fanbase to name their team. The CVC Capital’s owned Ahmedabad franchise was previously under probe related to their contract of the owners. But now the team has received a clean chit from the BCCI.
The two new sides have formally announced their coaching management. Former Zimbabwe captain Andy Flower will be the coach of the Lucknow squad while former Indian speedster Ashish Nehra has been roped in by the Ahemdabad team for that position.
Brijhesh Patel also affirmed that the mega auction will happen on February 12 and 13 at Bengaluru.
“Yes, the auction will be held in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13,”
IPL finds a new title sponsor
In a major development, the TATA Group will be the new title sponsor for the marquee league after VIVO. With the surge of delta and omicron cases across India, talks on whether India will host the league this year or not are currently ongoing amongst the officials. Hence a lot is still to be asserted by the league governing council but fans are eagerly waiting for the D-Day.
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