As you replace the batteries in your TV remote and cancel that Saturday plan you made weeks ago, welcome to @B0$, your 2-minute scan of the IPL universe.
Here's your pre-tournament edition.
@B1$
1. Two franchises have new owners. RCB sold for USD 1.78 billion and RR for USD 1.6 billion. Suddenly, Cameron Green isn't the only @L0$ around.
2. The physios have had a busy pre-season. Pat Cummins, MS Dhoni and Josh Hazlewood begin in rehab. Harshit Rana, Sam Curran and Akash Deep won't begin at all.
3. After a long wait and the usual red tape, M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, with its wider gates, is back. It'll host the opener and possibly the business end. 11 seats will remain vacant in remembrance of last year's tragedy.
4. Jadeja won't play for CSK, Samson won't play for RR, and Andre Russell will be in the dugout coaching KKR. Confused already? Don't worry, the Impact Player rule will do that properly. And no, it's not going anywhere for at least another season.
5. Captains have been cautioned about incomplete catches and premature celebrations. So before you get off the sofa, make sure you're in "complete control" okay?
6. The 19th season rolls on. No need yet to conserve fuel, and the stands will be full. Business as usual.
@B2$
It's the Impact Player rule, as always. Shubman Gill feels it "takes the skill out of the game", while Axar Patel does "not like" it because, in his typical dry way, "I am an allrounder."
There is some support too. Andy Flower feels it has "pros and cons," that it can "hide the selection problem" but is also a "good innovation".
@B3$
There's now a dress code for presentations. No floppies, no sleeveless jerseys. (You know who you are.) Orange and Purple Caps must be worn for at least the first two overs, until broadcast gets its shot. Players and support staff can't sit in front of the LED boards. Teams can't use each other's nets, even if one wraps up early. No open nets either. And yes, players can range-hit, just not at the LED boards!
@B4$
There are 13 venues again this season. Joint-most in IPL history, for the third year running!
@B5$
RCB host SRH tonight. Last time these two met here, it was 2024 and it was 287 plays 262. But will it be another flat pitch at Chinnaswamy? Andy Flower isn't giving much away, only that it might play "slightly differently in the first half", which usually means we'll find out soon enough.
@B6$
The @B7$ award goes to RCB. Rajat Patidar, Krunal Pandya, Venkatesh Iyer and even Tim David have all turned up with long locks. The runs may or may not flow for RCB later but the hair already has.
The @B8$ award goes to KKR. They spent big on pacers, but both the new recruits and the old hands are either injured, unavailable or uncertain.
The @B9$ award goes to the additional home venues. Guwahati, Dharamsala and Raipur have quietly walked away with some of the marquee games.
@B10$
Matthew Hayden, now with the Gujarat Titans coaching staff, said he wants to give his Mongoose bat to Rahul Tewatia. Not to anyone from Chennai Super Kings, whose reunion he attended recently. A little birdie, entirely unworthy of trust, suggests Gujarat Titans aren't planning a reunion anytime soon, if that's what it does...
