The 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) was played without a crowd due to the coronovirus epidemic, but managed to break the cash-rich audience record as 200 million people prepared to watch the tournament opener. In addition, the league was being watched by 269 million viewers in the opening week of last year’s IPL – an increase of 11 million viewers per match compared to 2019 – and a 15 percent increase in ad volume compared to the 12th edition.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli is expecting a similar craze this time too. The 14th edition of the IPL will start from Friday as RCB begin their campaign against defending champions Mumbai Indians at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
As each team is playing at a neutral venue, Kohli feels that there is no home advantage as the positive side can take a side before the start of the IPL.
“There is nothing like playing in the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in front of your home crowd and I think obviously the fans would like to see us play but the good thing is that we are back in India and one more positive thing. That is no domestic advantage, ”said Kohli at a virtual press conference on the eve of IPL 2020.
He added, “Every team is playing in neutral venues and the strength of your squad really comes down to the fort. Until the last three-four matches, the IPL was so competitive that everyone was ready to qualify.”
Kohli said, “Which I think was very good for the tournament, the viewership went through the roof, which I expect this time too and the tournament will be very competitive this time too.”
RCB qualified for the playoffs in the 2020 edition and are aiming to go one step ahead to win their first IPL title in the upcoming tournament. Kohli said, “It doesn’t feel long ago that we were together, because of how things had happened in the last year. We resume at normal times that IPL happens.”
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“We had a great season last time, probably wanted to move a few steps forward, which we clearly aim for as a side. Very excited to be with the squad,” he said.
RCB Squad: Virat Kohli (c), Devdutt Padikkal, Fin Allen (wk), AB de Villiers (wk), Pavan Deshpande, Washington Sundar, Daniel Symes, Yuzvendra Chahal, Adam Zampa, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammad Siraj, Navdeep Saini Richardson, Harshal Patel, Glenn Maxwell, Sachin Baby, Rajat Patidar, Mohammad Azharuddin, Kyle Jamieson, Daniel Christian, Suyesh Prabhudesai, KS India.
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