IPL 2022 mega auction in Bengaluru as dates confirmed after governing council meeting

The Indian Premier League (IPL) governing council meeting took place on Tuesday (January 11). Apart from officially approving the two new IPL teams' entry -- i.e. RPSG group's Lucknow franchise and CVC Capital-owned Ahmedabad -- into the cash-rich league, TATA Group were declared as the title sponsors after Chinese mobile manufacturer VIVO's pullout. In addition, the venue and dates for the forthcoming IPL 2022 mega auction also got confirmed. 

The upcoming mega auction is set to be two-day affair and will take place in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13. For the unversed, the two new IPL teams will get a chance to pick three players each from the non-retained list before the action in the mega auction. The likes of KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik and Krunal Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Kagiso Rabada, Rashid Khan, David Warner and many other top names haven't been retained by their respective franchises. Hence, the mega auction is keenly awaited among IPL loyalists all around the globe. 

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While many key decisions took place in the IPL GC meeting, nothing has been finalised when it comes to the venues for the IPL 2022 edition. The last two IPL seasons have been played largely in the UAE (with the 2020 season held entirely in UAE whereas last year's final leg also took place in the Middle East), this year's IPL season's scheduling will also test the BCCI as Covid-19 cases are on the rise in India. Thus, the board hasn't taken a call on the venues and will decide after monitoring the situation in March. The Sourav Ganguly-led board will get in touch with all the stakeholders and the government before a final call is made. At present, the third-wave scare is looming large in the country. 

It is believed that if the situation doesn't improve by early March, BCCI will take a call, create a cluster to shift the tournament where there are four of five stadiums with no air travel. 

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Talking about the last IPL season, it was the first-ever edition to be held in two halves. IPL 14 started in India before it was postponed indefinitely midway, in early May, due to the second wave of the Covid-19 infection. Later in the year, the tournament was shifted in the UAE where MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings (CSK) returned victorious by winning their fourth title overall.