Sport Trading 
Predictions 
The 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is expected to start on the 22nd of March. Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata to kickstart the tournament.
Meanwhile, runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will get to play the second game of the competition when they host Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on the 23rd of March. That will most likely to be an afternoon game, as it is a Sunday.
It is a tradition in the IPL that the defending champions get to play and host the opening game of the season. Apart from that, they also get the hosting rights for the final. Thus, the iconic Eden Gardens will host the IPL 2025 final along with Qualifier 2. With SRH reaching the final, Hyderabad will host the Qualifier 1 and Eliminator. The final is likely to be scheduled on the 25th of May.
The Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) is yet to officially announce the dates of the IPL 2025. According to sources on Cricbuzz, only dates of key matches have been shared with the franchises. The entire schedule is likely to be released in a few days.
About a month ago, BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla had indicated that the 2025 edition of the IPL might start on the 23rd of March but the official broadcasters have requested a Saturday start. Thus, the board agreed to the request and moved the date one day prior to the original schedule. In fact, start dates for the three seasons (2025, 2026 and 2027) were revealed in November last year but those dates haven’t been adhered to for 2025.
Guwahati, Dharamsala likely to host a couple of IPL 2025 games
Like every year, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Jaipur and Mullanpur will be the regular home venues for the 10 teams. However, apart from them, Guwahati and Dharamsala are likely to host a couple of games each.
Guwahati has been RR’s second home venue for the last few years and they will play two matches at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium. RR will face Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on the 26th and 30th of March respectively in Guwahati. On the other hand, Dharamsala is Punjab Kings’ second home and will host a couple of fixtures once again like most years.
