Former finalists Delhi Capitals will not be playing their first two home matches in their hometown in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Delhi have chosen to play their home matches in the first phase of the 16th season of IPL in Visakhapatnam, the organisers said on Thursday, February 22.
The fixtures for the first 21 matches of IPL 2024 were announced on Thursday by the Indian cricket board (BCCI). The schedule for only the first 17 days – from March 22 to April 7 – was announced with the governing body saying that the remaining fixtures will be announced after the Election Commission announces the dates for the Lok Sabha polls, scheduled to be held later in the year.
As it turned out, Delhi Capitals will not be playing their first two home games at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Notably, the capital city will host the second leg of Women’s Premier League 2024, which will be played from February 23 to March 17 in Bengaluru and New Delhi. 11 matches, including the final on March 17, will be played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in the second season of the WPL.
“Having chosen to play their first two home matches in Visakhapatnam, the Delhi Capitals will first host the Chennai Super Kings on Sunday, March 31 in the port city and will then face the Kolkata Knight Riders at the same venue on Wednesday, April 3,” an IPL statement said.
While the Lok Sabha polls preparation is seen as one of the major reason for Delhi not playing their first two matches at home, it might be because of the number of WPL matches that will be played at the iconic venue before the start of IPL.
Notably, Delhi Capitals will play as many as five matches in the first phase of IPL 2024, the most by a team along with Gujarat Titans and Royal Challengers Bangalore.
DELHI CAPITALS’ FIRST 5 MATCHES SCHEDULE
- Punjab Kings vs Delhi Capitals in Mohali on March 23 – 3:30 pm IST
- Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Capitals in Jaipur on March 28 – 7:30 pm IST
- Delhi Capitals vs Chennai Super Kings in Vizag on March 31 – 7:30 pm iST
- Delhi Capitals vs Kolkata Knight Riders in Vizag on April 3 – 7:30 pm IST
- Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Capitals in Mumbai on April 7 – 3:30 pm IST
Delhi Capitals are likely to be led by Rishabh Pant as the wicketkeeper-batter is all set to make his much-awaited return to competitive cricket for the first time since he suffered multiple injuries in a road accident in December 2022. David Warner led the team in Pant’s absence last year, but the Capitals failed to finish in the top 4.
DELHI CAPITALS SQUAD FOR IPL 2024
Rishabh Pant (c), Pravin Dubey, David Warner, Vicky Ostwal, Prithvi Shaw, Anrich Nortje, Abishek Porel, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Lungi Ngidi, Lalit Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed, Mitchell Marsh, Ishant Sharma, Yash Dhull, Mukesh Kumar, Harry Brook, Tristan Stubbs, Ricky Bhui, Kumar Kushagra, Rasikh Dar, Jhye Richardson, Sumit Kumar, Shai Hope, Swastik Chhikara.
