The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have successfully made their way to Abu Dhabi, from their base in Dubai, for the first game of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 season, against Mumbai Indians. The team left at around 4 pm IST, just hours before the game, which starts at 7:30 pm IST (6:00 local).
“Her(e) we come Abudhabi (sic),” CSK manager Russell Radhakrishnan shared a story on Instagram from the bus.
The much-anticipated 13th edition of the IPL gets underway on Saturday, 19 September, with the defending and four-time champions Mumbai Indians taking on the last year’s runners-up Chennai Super Kings.
Apart from Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders (who are based in Abu Dhabi), all the remaining six teams are based in Dubai and will travel on match days by road. While Dubai hosts the most number of games, i.e., 24, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah are homes to 20 and 12 games, respectively.
Not just the manager, but CSK’s South African import Faf du Plessis also posted a picture on Instagram just before leaving from the team hotel in Dubai, for the first game.
The whole tournament is being held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this year, owing to health concerns in India due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Season 13's final is slated for 10 November.
Earlier in 2014, the first half of the IPL was held in the UAE because of the elections in India.
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