BCCI calls for meeting with all IPL captains before KKR vs RCB season opener; major changes expected: Report

The 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is set to kick off this week with the first match between the current champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Saturday, March 22. Prior to the start of the highly anticipated 18th edition of the IPL, all ten team captains will convene in Mumbai on March 20 for a crucial pre-season meeting.

As per Cricbuzz, the official meeting will take place at the headquarters of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The report also states that the managers of all 10 franchises have also been invited to attend.

The meeting, which will take place at the Cricket Centre, is expected to last one hour. As per Cricbuzz, all ten IPL franchises will be informed about the new additions and changes for the 2025 edition. Sponsor activities at the Taj Hotel, Mumbai, will follow the briefing.

The report in Cricbuzz states that the event will last four hours and end with a routine photoshoot featuring all ten IPL captains. Usually, the captains' photoshoot occurs in the city where the season opener is scheduled.

However, the BCCI has decided to conduct the captains' photoshoot at the board's headquarters. Earlier, all ten franchises confirmed their captains. The last skipper to be confirmed was Axar Patel for Delhi Capitals.

The other nine captains in IPL 2025 are Pat Cummins (SunRisers Hyderabad), Ajinkya Rahane (KKR), Hardik Pandya (Mumbai Indians), Ruturaj Gaikwad (Chennai Super Kings), Rajat Patidar (RCB), Rishabh Pant (Lucknow Super Giants), Shreyas Iyer (Punjab Kings), Sanju Samson (Rajasthan Royals) and Shubman Gill (Gujarat Titans).

All you need to know about IPL 2025

The 18th edition of IPL will commence on March 22, and the final will be played on May 25. The 74 matches of the season will be played across 13 venues and include 12 double-headers.

While the afternoon games will begin at 03.30 PM IST, the evening games will begin at 07.30 PM IST. The first of the 12 double-header days will take place on March 23 as SRH faces RR in an afternoon game in Hyderabad. This will be followed by a mouthwatering clash in the evening as the two five-time IPL champions—CSK and MI—lock horns at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.

DC and LSG will play their respective first matches of the season when they take on each other in Visakhapatnam on March 24. The world’s biggest cricket stadium—Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad—will host its first game of the season when GT hosts PBKS on March 25.

Following the conclusion of the league stage, the Playoffs will be played in Hyderabad and Kolkata. Hyderabad will host Qualifier 1 and Eliminator on May 20 and May 21. The action will then shift to Kolkata, which will host Qualifier 2 on May 23. The all-engrossing summit clash of the IPL 2025 will be played on May 25.

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