Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - HT Navi Mumbai Live
Bangalore likely to host IPL final; Pune’s new base is Visakhapatnam
NEW DELHI: Bangalore is likely to host this season’s IPL final instead of Mumbai, while debutants Rising Pune Supergiants will shift their home base to Visakhapatnam as the Bombay high court disallowed matches in drought-battered Maharashtra this May.
The sulking Mumbai Indians sought time till Sunday to pick their stand-in home city after the top brass of the cash-rich T20 cricket league gave the two Maharashtra franchises four options on Friday — Raipur, Jaipur, Visakhapatnam, and Kanpur — to choose from.
Other than the final, which Mumbai was supposed to host on May 29, the qualifier 1 playoff too could go to Bangalore as the court order forced the BCCI to reset the schedule. The other two playoffs — qualifier 2 and eliminator — will be held at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
The court directed the BCCI to shift all IPL matches after April 30 from Maharashtra, which is grappling with the worst early summer drought in years.
>> CONTINUED ON P13