BCCI secretary Jay Shah downplays reports of IPL 2024 moving to UAE

The Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary Jay Shah has said that IPL 2024 will not move outside India despite the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The clarification comes after reports floated regarding the possibility of part of the tournament shifting to the UAE.

On Saturday, the Election Commission of India announced the dates for the polls, set to take place in seven phases from April 19 to June 4. The apex body of Indian cricket was waiting for the election dates before unveiling the schedule for the remaining part of the tournament. The initial schedule has only been announced for March 22 - April 7.

"No, it won't be moved overseas," Jay Shah told Cricbuzz.

The event will get underway with defending champions Chennai Super Kings locking horns with the Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Chepauk. The Super Kings beat the Gujarat Titans in the 2023 final by five wickets.

Shreyas Iyer leaves for Kolkata ahead of IPL 2024

The Kolkata Knight Riders will breathe a sigh of relief, as their captain Shreyas Iyer left for Kolkata to join his teammates. There were doubts over the right-hander featuring in the tournament, as his back injury resurfaced during the Ranji Trophy final, keeping him out of Day 5.

The Knight Riders also created history in the IPL auction, shelling out INR 24.75 crore on Australian speedster Mitchell Starc, making him the costliest player in auction history. The two-time champions open their campaign against SunRisers Hyderabad on March 23 at Eden Garden in Kolkata.

The other purchases by KKR in the auction were Gus Atkinson, Mohammad Nabi, Sherfane Rutherford and Mujeeb ur Rahaman. However, Atkinson was replaced by Dushmantha Chameera. Meanwhile, Jason Roy had also pulled out due to personal reasons, with Phil Salt named as his replacement.