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The IPL 2023 is approximately two months away. The official start date for the tournament is yet to be announced, but the biggest T20 tournament of the year will likely begin in the last week of March or the first week of April.
For the first time since the 2019 season, the IPL will follow a home-and-away format this year. All IPL franchises will get the opportunity to play half of their league-stage matches on their home turf.
Over the years, fans would have noticed that the IPL franchises also prefer to have an alternative venue, where they host a couple of matches. The same trend could continue in the 2023 IPL season, and the following five cities may receive hosting rights for IPL matches for the first time.
#1 Bharat Ratna Shree Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium, Lucknow
Bharat Ratna Shree Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium is the home of the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) team. The venue recently played host to a T20I match between India and New Zealand.
LSG made their debut in the IPL last year, but did not get an opportunity to play their home matches in Lucknow. With IPL 2023 set to follow home-and-away format, Bharat Ratna Shree Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium will make its debut this year.
#2 Barkatullah Khan Stadium, Jodhpur
Rajasthan Royals (RR) have used Jaipur's Sawai Man Singh Stadium as their home venue, but in 2020, they showed interest in playing their home matches at other stadiums as well.
One of the stadiums that could be RR's alternative venue is Jodhpur's Barkatullah Khan Stadium. The venue hosted Legends League Cricket last year. As per reports, the BCCI team has reached Jodhpur to decide whether the venue meets the criteria for hosting IPL matches.
#3 Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati
Guwahati's Barsapara Cricket Stadium hosted a couple of matches in India's 2022/23 home season. Fans have turned up in huge numbers to watch the matches live at this venue.
In IPL 2020, Rajasthan Royals wanted to play two of their home matches on this ground, but the COVID-19 pandemic did not allow them. RR could look to bring the IPL to Guwahati in 2023.
#4 New Stadium of Baroda could make its debut in IPL 2023
Gujarat Titans will use Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium as their primary home venue. The defending champions may want to play all of their home matches at the world's largest cricket stadium, but they could also consider conducting one or two matches at other stadiums in Gujarat.
Rajkot's Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium has hosted IPL matches in the past, but Baroda's new stadium could make its debut in IPL 2023.
#5 Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram
Kerala has some of the most passionate cricket fans, but the state does not have its own IPL team right now. The existing IPL franchises could consider visiting Thiruvananthapuram's Greenfield International Stadium during IPL 2023.
Rajasthan Royals' captain Sanju Samson is from Kerala, while Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni have a huge fan following in the state. The seating capacity of 55,000 is another thing that may attract IPL teams.
