March 22 will see the return of India’s favourite sporting spectacle – the Indian Premier League – with ten teams taking part in the 17th edition of the tournament.

Royal Challengers Bangalore kick off this season, hoping to finally break their trophyless streak, taking on defending champions Chennai Super Kings who won their fifth trophy last year.

Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings are tied for the most tournament wins, with both teams looking to go outright top this season.

The Friday clash between Virat Kohli and Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s teams will see the start of a packed season with 74 games, including playoffs.

So far, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has only unveiled an initial schedule for the first two weeks, which will see 21 matches take place between March 22 and April 7.

Further dates are set to be announced as the BCCI coordinates with the Election Commission in light of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, set to be held between April 19 and June 1.

With the elections being held in seven phases, the cricketing body is looking to finalise the rest of the schedule after consulting with the government and security agencies.

Delhi Capitals will be playing the matches in the first schedule at Visakhapatnam, with pitch concerns in their home ground at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, which recently hosted the Women’s Premier League.

The first few days of the tournament will see four double headers with evening matches starting at 7:30 pm.

The IPL final is slated for May 26, leaving only a five-day buffer before the T20 World Cup commences in the USA and West Indies.

This is not the first time an IPL-election clash has occurred, with 2019’s general elections also overlapping with the league. BCCI took a similar approach five years ago, too, releasing only the initial two weeks’ schedule revealed first. The remaining matches were announced later.

Take a look at the franchise-wise fixture list spanning the first 15 days of the tournament:

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) Fixtures:

March 22: CSK vs RCB in Chennai

March 26: CSK vs GT in Chennai

March 31: DC vs CSK in Visakhapatnam

April 5: SRH vs CSK in Hyderabad

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) Fixtures:

March 22: CSK vs RCB in Chennai

March 25: RCB vs PBKS in Bengaluru

March 29: RCB vs KKR in Bengaluru

April 2: RCB vs LSG in Bengaluru

April 6: RR vs RCB in Jaipur

Punjab Kings (PBKS) Fixtures:

March 23: PBKS vs DC in Mullanpur

March 25: RCB vs PBKS in Bengaluru

March 30: LSG vs PBKS in Lucknow

April 4: GT vs PBKS in Ahmedabad

Delhi Capitals (DC) Fixtures:

March 23: PBKS vs DC in Mullanpur

March 28: RR vs DC in Jaipur

March 31: DC vs CSK in Visakhapatnam

April 3: DC vs KKR in Visakhapatnam

April 7: MI vs DC in Mumbai

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Fixtures:

March 23: KKR vs SRH in Kolkata

March 29: RCB vs KKR in Bengaluru

April 3: DC vs KKR in Visakhapatnam

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) Fixtures:

March 23: KKR vs SRH in Kolkata

March 27: SRH vs MI in Hyderabad

March 31: GT vs SRH in Ahmedabad

April 5: SRH vs CSK in Hyderabad

Rajasthan Royals (RR) Fixtures:

March 24: RR vs LSG in Jaipur

March 28: RR vs DC in Jaipur

April 1: MI vs RR in Mumbai

April 6: RR vs RCB in Jaipur

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) Fixtures:

March 24: RR vs LSG in Jaipur

March 30: LSG vs PBKS in Lucknow

April 2: RCB vs LSG in Bengaluru

April 7: LSG vs GT in Lucknow

Gujarat Titans (GT) Fixtures:

March 24: GT vs MI in Ahmedabad

March 26: CSK vs GT in Chennai

March 31: GT vs SRH in Ahmedabad

April 4: GT vs PBKS in Ahmedabad

April 7: LSG vs GT in Lucknow

Mumbai Indians (MI) Fixtures:

March 24: GT vs MI in Ahmedabad

March 27: SRH vs MI in Hyderabad

April 1: MI vs RR in Mumbai

April 7: MI vs DC in Mumbai