New Delhi: In a significant update ahead of the IPL 2025 playoffs, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced new venues and a crucial rule change aimed at ensuring smoother match completion amid unpredictable weather.
Playoff Schedule and Venue Changes
• Ahmedabad will host two key matches — Qualifier 2 and the Final — on June 1 and June 3, respectively.
• Mullanpur, a relatively new IPL venue, will host Qualifier 1 and the Eliminator on May 29 and May 30.
• The original hosts, Hyderabad and Kolkata, were replaced due to changes triggered by the India-Pakistan military conflict, which caused a one-week pause in the tournament.
• The BCCI has also cited monsoon concerns as a key factor in revising the schedule. Notably, the May 23 match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) has been moved from Bengaluru to Lucknow due to persistent rain that previously washed out a game at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
“The new venues for the playoffs were decided by the IPL Governing Council keeping in mind the weather conditions and other parameters,” the BCCI stated.
New Rule: Extra Time Increased for Matches
In a proactive move, the BCCI has extended the extra time allowance for completing matches from 60 minutes to 120 minutes. This rule, earlier reserved only for playoff matches, will now apply to all remaining league games starting May 20.
“Similar to the playoffs stage, an additional one hour will be allocated to the playing conditions for the remaining matches of the league stage,” the BCCI confirmed.
Punjab Kings Make History
In a long-awaited achievement, the Punjab Kings have qualified for the IPL playoffs for the first time since 2014 and will play their opening playoff game at home in Mullanpur.
Teams including Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Gujarat Titans have also secured spots in the knockout phase.
With this revamped schedule and rule tweak, the BCCI aims to ensure a smooth and fair conclusion to what has been an eventful IPL season.
