IPL third season to kick off from March 12 in India

The Board of Cricket Council of India (BCCI) announced that the third edition of the Indian Premier League will begin on March 12 in Hyderabad with the final to be held at the D Y Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on April 25.

After the IPL Governing Council's meeting Lalit Modi told that the matches are going to kickoff in Hyderabad on March 12. The third place match will be held at the D Y Patil Stadium on April 24, while the final will also be held at the D Y Patil Stadium on April 25. The semi-finals will be held in Bangalore. He added that the two new franchisees will be added to the current tally of eight teams from the fourth season of the IPL in 2011.

Modi added that there will be two new franchisees with a minimum bid price of US $225 million. They will come into operation in 2011 and follow the same process for the new teams as during the first auction. He announced that the auction for the fourth IPL would be held between the third and fourth quarter next year.

The auction for 2011 onwards for the teams will take place in between the third and fourth quarter of 2010 after season three of the IPL and probably after the 2010 edition of the Champions League because they don't want too many changes in the teams during the Champions League.

The current franchisees will be able to keep a certain number of players. The modalities are being worked out and they will announce that shortly. Modi also told that the IPL governing council has decided to remove the rule that restricted a franchisee from having more than two Australian players in their ranks. There was a restriction being imposed on having two Australian players in a team. The governing council has removed those restrictions.

Modi indicated that few players had been traded by the franchisees in the ongoing trading period. When asked about the participation of Pakistani players in the next season of IPL, Modi told that unfortunately the trading window began, they could not participate in it. There is auction window coming up and the Pakistani players will be put up at the auction.

The auction has been announced on January 19, with the upper limit being decided at US $ 7,50,000 by the governing council.