BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia has announced IPL 2027's tentative dates, with the tournament set to be brought forward by two weeks. Here's why.
The BCCI are planning to bring the IPL 2027 dates ahead by two weeks as compared to the 2026 edition to combat the extreme summer in majority of the country and also avoid the onset of pre-monsoon. The recently concluded season started on March 28 and the final was played on May 31. The 2025 edition had run from March 22 to June 3. The usual IPL window runs from late March to late May or early June.
Saikia has now revealed passing on instructions to have IPL 2027 start by March 10 and schedule the final for May 15. This would mean that India and Australia's Test players will only have a week to turn up for their respective IPL sides, with the fifth and last Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test scheduled be played from February 27 to March 3 in Ahmedabad.
"This year, IPL started around the 29th of March, and it was over by the 31st of May," he told the Press Trust of India. "The only thing we are discussing is that during the fag end of the tournament, after 15th of May, there are issues regarding the weather, particularly in some areas, there is apprehension of having rainfall or the pre-monsoon season starting or on the other hand, there are warm weather, hot conditions, which are not very conducive either for the players or for the crowds or the fans."
"So, there is a discussion going on in BCCI as well as in our IPLGC regarding whether we can start the tournament a little bit earlier than the fag end of March," Saikia added. "From next year, we'll make an effort and I have already instructed our general manager games development to look for the windows whether we can start it by 10th of March so that we want to conclude it by 15th of May so that there is no adverse weather conditions in the run-up to the final stages playoff and the finals of the IPL 2027 which will be the 28th edition of IPL.
"I'm hearing a lot of complaints from the fans as well as from the players, because not all players are very well-equipped or well-acclimatised to play in such hot conditions. So, to provide a pleasant atmosphere for the tournament, we want to close it by 15th of May. That is our first goal now, and that is the prime area of concern for the next year's 20th edition of IPL, which will be a big event."
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IPL expansion from 74 to 94 matches not possible at the moment: BCCI secretary
The BCCI secretary also touched upon the possibility of expanding the IPL from the current 74 to 94 games going forward, with every side playing the other twice in round robin fashion. Saikia remarked that the expansion isn't possible at the moment, "considering the interest of other cricketing nations of the ICC".
On this, he said: "So far as the other thing regarding increase of the number of matches that is not feasible right at this moment because we have to consider many other factors regarding various players coming from various nations and with lot of difficulties we are getting this two months window. But it will be very difficult to enhance it to go beyond two months because other countries also have to play bilateral matches and there are various other things relating to international draws and fixtures.
"So, at this moment there is no discussion regarding increasing it from 74 to any further matches up to 94, which is not happening immediately. In course of later years I do not know what will be the position but right at this moment I don't see any possibility of increasing it from 74 to 94. Because for that, not only India is to be considered but the interest of other cricketing nations of the ICC especially players from Australia, England, New Zealand, South Africa all are playing in this tournament ... West Indies ... so we do not want to upset their bilateral matches also and other international pictures including various other multi-country tournaments.
"So, at this moment I don't see any chance of increasing it beyond the window of two months, which will accommodate only about 74 matches with a lot of double headers during the run-up to the tournament."
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