Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium is tipped to host the final and Qualifier 2 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.
Though the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is yet to officially confirm the revised playoff venues, Cricbuzz reports they have been earmarked for matches on June 1 and June 3.
The BCCI is currently monitoring weather patterns across India before finalizing this schedule.
The plan could change if the forecasts turn completely inaccurate, as weather remains the only reason the BCCI has withheld announcing the venues for the playoffs. The board is closely monitoring the monsoon’s movement across the country before finalising the schedule. The expectation, however, is that there is unlikely to be any rain in early June in Ahmedabad as of now.
As for the first two playoffs matches, Mumbai remains a potential option, but the final decision will hinge on the timing of the monsoon’s arrival. The city experienced heavy rainfall a few days ago, and the weather has remained overcast since.
The BCCI is expected to decide soon. If a North Indian venue like Delhi, Jaipur, or even Lucknow is likely to remain unaffected by the wet weather, the board may opt for one of those instead.
In all likelihood, the BCCI will not shift the IPL bandwagon to a new city for the playoffs and the final. The venues will most likely be among the six cities already allotted the 17 remaining league matches of the season following the suspension.
The key factor influencing the BCCI’s decision is operational - transporting broadcast equipment and setting up infrastructure at a new venue would be logistically challenging.
Logistics, in fact, is the primary reason the BCCI did not allocate matches to Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Mohali/Dharamsala. Teams like CSK and SRH had only one remaining home game, and the board deemed it impractical to move broadcast equipment for a single fixture.
Mohali and Dharamsala were ruled out due to recent border trouble, prompting the BCCI to make Jaipur the new base for Punjab Kings, who will now play their two remaining home games there.
Kolkata is facing unpredictable weather, and that may be the reason why the final two games have been moved away from the Eden Gardens. KKR, anyway, had played all their home games in Kolkata already.
Source: Cricbuzz
