IPL, Comrades clash avoided
Brad Morgan
31 March 2009
With a decision to move the Indian Premier League to South Africa having been made on 24 March, less than a month before the start of the tournament, a problem emerged because of a potential clash between the event and the Comrades Marathon, which finishes at Sahara Stadium Kingsmead in Durban. It has been resolved.
With its big Indian population, Durban was an easy choice to be one of eight venues for the Indian Premier League (IPL), but it will not host a semi-final, as had been expected. Once it has hosted its final match on 20 May, the organisers of the Comrades Marathon will begin construction of the finishing area at the ground.
Usually it is a job that takes three weeks, but this time around they will have only a matter of days because this year's event has been moved to an earlier date, 24 May, so that it does not clash with the Fifa Confederations Cup.
Host to 16 matches
Kingsmead will, nonetheless,
host more than a quarter of the IPL matches, with 16 of the 59 games taking place in Durban – an indication that the organisers have taken the huge Indian population of the city into the consideration; traditionally, they are very good supporters of cricket.
Durban will host more matches than any other venue. Twelve matches will be played at Centurion's SuperSport Park, while eight matches will be played at both the Liberty Life Wanderers in Johannesburg and Sahara Oval Saint George’s Park.
Newlands in Cape Town, which will host the opening matches of the tournament, has been allocated seven matches. Three matches will be played at the De Beers Diamond Oval in Kimberley, and the remaining two games will take place at Bloemfontein's OUTsurance Oval.
Two matches per day
For those who cannot get enough of Twenty20 cricket and the IPL, there are 13 dates that features consecutive matches at the same venue. There are a total of 22 days upon
which two matches will be contested.
The two semi-finals will be played at SuperSport and the Wanderers on 22 May and 23 May respectively. The final also takes place at the Wanderers, on 24 May.
Meanwhile, the cutoff date for the Comrades, 31 March, has arrived. Prospective entrants, however, will be able to qualify in events up to 28 April.
Hand delivered entries will be accepted at Sahara Stadium Kingsmead on Tuesday, 31 March, from 07:00 to 18:00.
INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
18 April
12:30 Mumbai Indians v Chennai Super Kings, Cape Town
16:30 Rajasthan Royals v Bangalore Royal Challengers, Cape Town
19 April
12:30 Delhi Daredevils v Kings XI Punjab, Cape Town
16:30 Deccan Chargers v Kolkata Knight Riders, Cape Town
20 April
16:30 Chennai Super Kings v Bangalore Royal Challengers, Port
Elizabeth
21 April
12:30 Kings XI Punjab v Kolkata Knight Riders, Durban
16:30 Rajasthan Royals v Mumbai Indians, Durban
22 April
16:30 Bangalore Royal Challengers v Deccan Chargers, Cape Town
23 April
12:30 Chennai Super Kings v Delhi Daredevils, Durban
16:30 Kolkata Knights Riders v Rajastan Royals, Cape Town
24 April
16:30 Bangalore Royal Challengers v Kings XI Punjab, Durban
25 April
12:30 Mumbai Indians v Deccan Chargers, Durban
16:30 Chennai Super Kings v Kolkata Knight Riders, Cape Town
26 April
12:30 Bangalore Royal Challengers v Delhi Daredevils, Port Elizabeth
16:30Kings XI Punjab v Rajasthan Royals, Cape Town
27 April
12:30 Deccan Chargers v Chennai Super Kings, Durban
16:30 Kolkata Knight Riders v Mumbai Indians, Port Elizabeth
28 April
16:30 Delhi Daredevils v Rajasthan Royals, Centurion
29 April
12:30 Kolkata Knight Riders v Bangalore Royal Challengers, Durban
16:30 Kings XI Punjab v Mumbai Indians, Durban
30 April
12:30 Deccan Chargers v Delhi Daredevils, Centurion
16:30 Rajasthan Royals v Chennai Super Kings, Centurion
1 May
12:30 Mumbai Indians v Kolkata Knight Riders, East London
16:30 Kings XI Punjab v Bangalore Royal Challengers, Durban
2 May
12:30 Deccan Chargers v Rajastan Royals, Port Elizabeth
16:30 Delhi Daredevils v Chennai Super Kings, Johannesburg
3 May
12:30 Kolkata Knights Riders v Kings XI Punjab, Port Elizabeth
16:30 Bangalore Royal Challengers v
Mumbai Indians, Johannesburg
4 May
16:30 Chennai Super Kings v Deccan Chargers, East London
5 May
12:30 Rajasthan Royals v Kings XI Punjab, Durban
16:30 Delhi Daredevils v Kolkata Knight Riders, Durban
6 May
16:30 Deccan Chargers v Mumbai Indians, Centurion
7 May
12:30 Bangalore Royal Challengers v Rajasthan Royals, Centurion
16:30 Kings XI Punjab v Chennai Super Kings, Centurion
8 May
16:30 Delhi Daredevils v Mumbai Indians, East London
9 May
12:30 Deccan Chargers v Kings XI Punjab, Kimberley
16:30 Chennai Super Kings v Rajasthan Royals, Kimberley
10 May
12:30 Mumbai Indians v Bangalore Royal Challengers, Port Elizabeth
16:30 Kolkata Knight Riders v Delhi Daredevils, Johannesburg
11 May
16:30 Rajasthan Royals v Deccan Chargers, Kimberley
12 May
12:30 Bangalore Royal Challengers v Kolkata Knight Riders, Centurion
16:30 Mumbai Indians v Kings XI Punjab, Centurion
13 May
16:30 Delhi Daredevils v Deccan Chargers, Durban
14 May
12:30 Bangalore Royal Challengers v Chennai Super Kings, Durban
16:30 Mumbai Indians v Rajasthan Royals, Durban
15 May
16:30 Kings XI Punjab v Delhi Daredevils, Bloemfontein
16 May
12:30 Chennai Super Kings v Mumbai Indians, Port Elizabeth
16:30 Kolkata Knight Riders v Deccan Chargers, Johannesburg
17 May
12:30 Kings XI Punjab v Deccan Chargers, Johannesburg
16:30 Rajasthan Royals v Delhi Daredevils, Bloemfontein
18 May
16:30
Kolkata Knight Riders v Chennai Super Kings, Centurion
19 May
16:30 Delhi Daredevils v Bangalore Royal Challengers, Johannesburg
20 May
12:30 Rajasthan Royals v Kolkata Knight Riders, Durban
16:30 Chennai Super Kings v Kings XI Punjab, Durban
21 May
12:30 Mumbai Indians v Delhi Daredevils, Centurion
16:30 Deccan Chargers v Bangalore Royal Challengers, Centurion
22 May
16:30 1st Semi-final, Centurion
23 May
16:30 2nd Semi-final, Johannesburg
24 May
16:30 Final, Johannesburg
