The2020 Indian Premier League (also known asIPL 13 and branded asDream11 Indian Premier League 2020^[1]) was the thirteenth season of theIndian Premier League, a professionalTwenty20 cricket (T20) league established by theBoard of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2008. The tournament was originally scheduled to commence on 29 March 2020, but was suspended until 15 April due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. AfterIndian Prime MinisterNarendra Modi announced on 14 April that thelockdown in India would last until at least 3 May 2020, theBCCI suspended the tournament indefinitely. On 2 August 2020, it was announced that the tournament would be played between 19 September and 10 November 2020 in theUnited Arab Emirates.The tagline wasAb Khel Bolega: (Now game will speak.)^[2][3][4]

On 4 August 2020,Vivo pulled out as the title sponsor of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the 2020 edition.^[5][6] On 18 August, fantasy cricket league platformDream11 was named the title sponsor for the season with a bid of₹222 crore (US$26 million).^[7][8]

Defending championsMumbai Indians successfully retained their title for the first time with a five-wicket win overDelhi Capitals in thefinal on 10 November 2020.^[9]

The BCCI released the fixture details on 18 February 2020.^[10] The league stage was scheduled to start on 29 March 2020, with the opening match betweenMumbai Indians andChennai Super Kings, the finalists of the previous season, atWankhede Stadium in Mumbai.^[11] However, due to thecoronavirus pandemic, Maharashtra Chief MinisterUddhav Thackeray announced on 12 March that IPL matches can be held in the state only if they are played in empty stadiums.^[12] Deputy Chief Minister of DelhiManish Sisodia declared that no IPL matches will be held in Delhi.^[13]

On 13 March, the BCCI suspended the tournament until 15 April, in view of the ongoingcoronavirus pandemic.^[14] The decision regarding the postponement was reached by the Governing Council after a meeting with the owners of all eight franchise teams.^[15] On 9 April, with India under a nationwide lockdown, a BCCI official toldCNBC TV18 that the Board was considering hosting the tournament in July or during the winter, possiblybehind closed doors.^[16] On 14 April 2020, Indian Prime MinisterNarendra Modi said that the lockdown in India would last until at least 3 May 2020,^[17] with the tournament postponed further.^[18] The following day, the BCCI suspended the tournament indefinitely due to the pandemic.^[19]

On 17 April 2020,Sri Lanka Cricket offered to host the tournament.^[20] On 17 May 2020, the Indian government relaxed nationwide restrictions on sports events, allowing events to take place behind closed doors.^[21] On 24 May, Indian sports ministerKiren Rijiju stated that the decision on whether or not to allow the tournament to be conducted in 2020 will be made by the Indian government based on "the situation of the pandemic".^[22] News reports on 17 July suggested that the BCCI was considering hosting the tournament in the United Arab Emirates between the tentative dates of 26 September and 7 November.^[23]

After theInternational Cricket Council (ICC) postponed the 2020 edition of theMen's T20 World Cup, the BCCI soughtGovernment of India's permission to move the tournament to the UAE.^[24] On 24 July 2020, IPL Governing Council chairmanBrijesh Patel said that the tournament would be played in the UAE between 19 September and 10 November, should it get the nod from Government of India.^[25] On 10 August 2020, theGovernment of India gave its permission for the tournament to take place in theUAE.^[26] The full fixtures for the tournament were confirmed on 6 September 2020.^[27]

Some of the rules were changed for the 2020 edition of the IPL.

1. Players will not be allowed to use saliva to shine the ball.^[28]
2. All the matches will be playedwithout an audience.^[29]
3. Captains will not shake hands after thetoss.^[30]
4. Front footno-balls will be adjudicated by thethird umpire rather than the on-field umpire.^[31]
5. Teams will be allowedreplacements if a player tests positive for COVID-19.^[32]
6. If aSuper Over is a tie, subsequent Super Overs shall be played until there is a winner.^[33]

Until this season, all matches started at 8:00 PMIST, with some weekends hosting a 4:00 PM afternoon game. At the request ofStar Sports, BCCI agreed to start every match half an hour earlier. This led to the matches starting at 7:30 PM on weekdays, and weekends having both a 7:30 PM and a 3:30 PM game. This was done in an attempt to increase viewership and monetization, by trying to align it withprime time.^[34][35]

For the first time in IPL history, mid-season transfer was introduced. In mid-season transfer, teams can transfer players between teams like the European football leagues. For the mid-season transfer to begin, all teams must have played 7 matches. Then for a player to be transferred, the player should have played a maximum 2 matches. The player can be capped or uncapped and both Indian and International players can be transferred.^[36][37]

Kings XI Punjab's captainRavichandran Ashwin was transferred toDelhi Capitals in November 2019.Ajinkya Rahane,Trent Boult andMayank Markande got salary raises during pre-auction trades. The released players were announced on 15 November 2019.Robin Uthappa,Yuvraj Singh andChris Lynn were the most prominent names among the released players.Jaydev Unadkat, the costliest Indian player in 2019 auction, was also released. There were 12 transfers between teams during the 2020 transfer window.^[38]

The players auction for the 2020 season was held on 19 December 2019 in Kolkata.Pat Cummins was the most expensive player, purchased by theKolkata Knight Riders for₹15.5 crore (US$1.8 million), in doing so Cummins became the most expensive overseas player in the history of the IPL auction at the time.^[39][40] The most expensive Indian player sold wasPiyush Chawla for₹6.75 crore (US$800,000) toChennai Super Kings.^[41] On 18 August, Delhi Capitals signedAnrich Nortje to replaceChris Woakes.^[42] On 31 August, Royal Challengers Bangalore boughtAdam Zampa as a replacement forKane Richardson.^[43] On 2 September, Australian fast bowlerJames Pattinson was named as a replacement forLasith Malinga.^[44] On 12 September,Ali Khan became the firstAmerican cricketer to join IPL after he was selected as the replacement forHarry Gurney in Kolkata Knight Riders.^[45]Mitchell Marsh injured himself during Sunrisers Hyderabad's first match and was hence ruled out of the tournament.^[46]Jason Holder was named as his replacement.^[47]

United Arab Emirates
Dubai	Sharjah	Abu Dhabi
Dubai International Cricket Stadium	Sharjah Cricket Stadium	Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium
Capacity: 25,000	Capacity: 16,000	Capacity: 20,000
Dubai Sharjah Abu Dhabi

The schedule for the league stages of the 2020 season was published on the official IPL website on 6 September.^[48] The schedule for playoffs was announced later on 25 October 2020.^[49]

• Source: IPLT20.com^[69]
•  K. L. Rahul ofKings XI Punjab received theOrange Cap.

• Source: IPLT20.com^[70]
•  Kagiso Rabada ofDelhi Capitals received thePurple Cap.

• Source:^[71]

• Series home at ESPNcricinfo

• 2020 Indian Premier League
• Cricket events postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic
• Domestic cricket competitions in 2020–21

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