IPL 2023: Everything you need to know; Bangladesh players involved in the IPL

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is the world’s largest T20 league, attracting prominent players from around the world. Every year, the T20 League delivers on its promise of providing unmatched cricketing entertainment to fans. This year, one of the reasons to look forward to the IPL is a brand new digital streaming partner for the competition.

The Covid-19 pandemic has badly affected the IPL in the last three seasons, with matches held in the United Arab Emirates and in selected venues. This year’s IPL edition will be a season to cherish for fans, as they will get to see their home teams play in front of them.​

BCCI release IPL 2023 schedule

On Friday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) unveiled the schedule for the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), which will commence on March 31. In the league stage, all ten teams will play seven home games and seven away games, amounting to a total of 70 league matches, including 18 double-headers.

The IPL 2023 will be held at 12 venues over a 52-day period. The opening match will be played between Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings on March 31 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, which is the world’s largest cricket stadium.

The day games will begin at 3:30 PM IST and the evening games will start at 07:30 PM IST. Rajasthan Royals will play their first two home games in Guwahati and then their remaining home games in Jaipur. In contrast, Punjab Kings will play five home matches in Mohali and the remaining two in Dharamshala against Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals, respectively.

This IPL season will see live-streaming of matches in 4K, a first in Indian sports, by JioCinema. Voot, on the other hand, holds a smaller market share, and it remains to be seen whether the move will positively impact their revenue in the long run.​

What’s different in this edition of the IPL?

The 10 teams participating in the 16th edition of the IPL will be split into 2 groups, with five teams in each. Group A comprises of Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, ,Lucknow Super Giants, and  Rajasthan Royals while Group B features, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Chennai Super Kings , Punjab Kings,Sunrisers Hyderabad, and Gujarat Titans.

A new feature called the “Impact Player” has been introduced for the upcoming IPL season. Under this rule, teams can make tactical substitutions during the match. Before the start of the game, the captain can name up to four substitutes in addition to the starting XI. These substitutes can replace any player in the starting XI at any point until the end of the 14th over of either innings. The substitute players will be allowed to bat and bowl their full quota of overs.

The IPL will be played at 10 venues across India, including Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, and Mohali. Additionally, some matches will be played in Guwahati, which will serve as Rajasthan Royals’ second home, as well as Dharamsala, which is Punjab Kings’ second home.​

Who are the Bangladeshi players in the tournament?

The involvement of Bangladesh players in the marquee tournament might be cut short this year due to international commitments. Bangladesh are set to play 3 ODIs, 3 T20Is and a one-off test against Ireland in March and April, which will conclude only on April 8th.

The ten franchises of the Indian Premier League (IPL) have been notified by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that the players from Bangladesh participating in the Ireland series will be accessible only from April 8 to May 1. In May, Bangladesh are likely to play Sri Lanka in a 2-match test series and 3 ODIs which could further hamper their participation in the IPL.

Only two players have been picked from across the country to play in the cash-rich tournament, including star names Mustafizur Shakib Al Hasan and Litton Das. Both players will be representing the Kolkata Knight Riders this season.

Shakib Al Hasan was picked for a sum of INR 1.5 crores (1.92 cr BKT), while the Bangladeshi white-ball skipper was drafted in for INR 50 lakhs (64 lakhs BKT) by the Knight Riders. While Shakib has played for the Knight Riders before, it will be the first time Das has featured in the IPL.

Litton Das, who has been in excellent form in recent months, has been awarded an IPL contract as a result. He gained recognition for his spectacular knock against India during the ICC T20 World Cup in 2022, and has since been in a purple patch in the shortest format of the game. The 28-year-old has been batting fluently in T20 internationals this year with a strike rate of 140. While Das’ place in the starting lineup is not guaranteed, captain Shreyas Iyer may be enticed to use him as an unexpected option in the top order. 

JioCinema to stream IPL for free

The upcoming season of the Indian Premier League will mark the first-ever live streaming of matches in 4K or ultra-high-definition in the Indian broadcasting history. In addition, Jio is also planning to offer fans an agency to choose the camera angle they deem best, something which will be known as an interactive live stream. The tournament can be live-streamed in 12 languages.

Other than the above-mentioned features, IPL’s digital streaming will provide fans with real-time match statistics like wagon wheels and worm graphs to further enhance the viewing experience. Reliance Jio’s JioCinema service is set to benefit from the increased number of active users resulting from free IPL streaming. However, it remains to be seen how Voot, owned by Viacom 18 and holding a relatively small market share, will respond to this development and whether it will contribute positively to its revenue in the long run.

At last year’s Annual General Meeting of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Akash Ambani, Director & Head of Strategy at Reliance Jio, had mentioned that JioAir Fiber’s gigabit speed has enabled them to deliver multiple video streams in 4K, featuring different camera angles. According to him, this allows for a truly immersive experience as they can dynamically select which camera angle to focus on while previewing multiple live video streams at the same time. To start betting for IPL, do check out our casino reviews and find out which casino is suited for you.