Indian Premier League (IPL) sides Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals are set to arrive in Guwahati on Monday ahead of the clash on April 5 at the ACA Barsapara Stadium here.
This comes after Guwahati got the chance to host an IPL match for the very first time which was confirmed when the schedule was released for the ongoing season on February 17. Assam Cricket Association (ACA) Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati will be the home ground for Rajasthan Royals for two IPL matches.
As per reports, Punjab Kings will arrive in Guwahati at around 4 pm today. They will be arriving at the Borjhar airport in a special flight from Delhi numbered G8-151.
On the other hand, home team Rajasthan Royals will also be touching down in Guwahati today. Their flight from Hyderabad numbered SG-9321 will be landing at around 5.30 pm.
From the airport, both teams will head straight to their hotels. While Punjab Kings will be put up at the Vivanta Hotel in Guwahati’s Khanapara area, Rajasthan Royals will head to the Radisson Blu Hotel along the National Highway.
On February 17, IPL released the schedule for the season with Guwahati selected as one of the venues to host two matches. This meant that IPL would be available to cricket lovers in the northeastern city for the first time ever.
According to the schedule, Guwahati will witness Rajasthan Royals play Punjab Kings in the first of the two IPL matches on April 5 (Wednesday). The match will be played at 7.30 pm.
Moreover, the second IPL match will be played two days later on April 8 (Saturday) where Rajasthan Royals will take on Delhi Capitals. That match will take place at 3.30 pm.
It may be noted that IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals has an agreement with the Assam Cricket Association and also promotes the youth game here in Guwahati.
Speaking about it ACA President Taranga Gogoi had said, "Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, there were talks of organising an IPL match in Guwahati. However, the plans were shelved during the pandemic as the IPL had to shifted to Dubai and was only played at selected venues."
He said, "Assam Cricket Association has always wanted to host an IPL match in Guwahati and as there are no northeast based teams in the IPL, we requested Rajasthan Royals to consider Guwahati as their home ground. On their behalf, a team came to inspect the ground and the facilities available."
