IPL 2022: Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) has appointed former South African skipper Faf du Plessis as captain for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022.
Du Plessis, one of the consistent performers for Chennai Super Kings, was an obvious choice after Virat Kohli decided to call time on his leadership role for the franchise after a decade during which their trophy drought didn’t end. He was bought for ₹7 crore by RCB and is available for the whole season.
Du Plessis was handed over the cap by team’s chairman Prathmesh Mishra and director cricket operations Mike Hesson in a virtual event here. “I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity. I have played a lot of IPL and understand the dynamics of the game. It’s no small thing to trust an overseas player,” Du Plessis, who gave up South African captaincy across all formats in 2020, said.
“I would rely heavily on the amazing experience of domestic players. We have got thegreat leader of the game in Virat Kohli,” Du Plessis said.
Virat Kohli, Indian cricket team captain and RCB player, said he was happy to pass on the baton to Faf. “Excited to partner with him and play under him,” said the former RCB skipper.
70 league matches, 4 playoffs
The 15th season will start on 26th March at the Wankhede stadium with a clash between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders. This year’s IPL series will be held in Mumbai and Pune only. A total number of 70 league matches and 4 Playoff games will be played in the duration of 65 days, BCCI said.
On 27th March, the league will stage its first double-header, starting off with a Day game at Brabourne, where the Delhi Capitals will square off against Mumbai Indians.
The DY Patil Stadium will host the clash between Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore at night. The MCA Stadium in Pune will host its first game on 29th March, when Sunrisers Hyderabad take on Rajasthan Royals.
In all, 20 matches each will be held at Wankhede Stadium and DY Patil Stadium, 15 matches each at Brabourne and MCA International Stadium, Pune. There will be 12 doubleheaders in total with the first match starting at 3:30 PM IST. All evening matches will start at 7:30 PM IST.
The final game of the league stage will be played between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings on 22nd May at the Wankhede Stadium.The schedule for the Playoffs and the TATA IPL 2022 final to be played on 29th May will be announced later, the BCCI said.
With PTI inputs
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