The
Indian Premier League (IPL) governing council on Wednesday allowed 25 % of the crowd to watch matches from the stadium in the upcoming
season of the T20 league. IPL 2022 is starting on Saturday with a match between
defending champions Chennai Super Kings and runners-up Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium.

Also Read: IPL 2022: Possible XI of Chennai Super Kings

“This
match will be a momentous occasion as the 15th edition of the IPL will welcome
fans back to the stadiums after a brief hiatus owing to the pandemic,” an
IPL release stated.

“The
matches will be played across stadiums in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai & Pune with
an audience occupancy rate of 25% as per COVID-19 protocols,” the release
added.

Also Read: Chennai Super Kings, Lucknow Super Giants unveil jerseys for IPL 2022, see pics

IPL
2022 is going to be a 10-team tournament, with two new franchises – Lucknow Super Giants and
Gujarat Titans – joining eight teams from the previous season. The upcoming
season will compromise 74 matches, including playoffs and final. The matches
will be played at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium and Brabourne Stadium along with
Navi Mumbai’s DY Patil ground and MCA International Stadium in Pune.

In the IPL 2022 mega auction, 590 players went under the hammer but only 204, including 67 overseas players, could find teams. 10 teams combined spent Rs 551 crore, with Ishan Kishan ending up as the highest-paid player at Rs 15.25 crore.  England all-rounder Liam Livingstone was the most expensive overseas player at the IPL Mega Auction 2022. Punjab Kings signed him for Rs 11.5 crore.

Also Read: Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma ‘intends to play all games’ in IPL 2022

As
many as 20 games each will be held at Wankhede and DY Patil, while 15 each will
be played at Brabourne and MCA International Stadium, Pune.

This
season will also mark the return of IPL to India. In 2021, the league was played
behind closes doors across a few venues in India but was suspended mid-way in
May after COVID-19 breached the bio bubble and infected players and support staff. The
remaining matches were then played in the UAE in September-October.

Also Read: IPL 2022: Coach Shane Watson hails Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant, Prithvi Shaw

The
2020 edition of the league was also played in the UAE.