Chennai may lose IPL games
An apex court bench hearing a dispute over the legality of constructing three new stands and a gymnasium at the MA Chidambaram stadium has asked the IPL authorities and Chennai municipal corporation to reconsider staging league matches.
Amol Karhadkar
09-May-2014
The new stands at the MA Chidambaram Stadium have been the subject of a legal tussle • Associated Press
The decision over whether Chennai could host IPL games in 2014 is likely to be made on Saturday in a meeting between the IPL authorities and representatives of the Chennai municipal corporation. An apex court bench which has been hearing dispute over the legality of reconstruction of three stands and a gymnasium at the MA Chidambaram Stadium has ordered both the parties to reach an amicable settlement with regard to staging IPL matches.
The meeting will be held in Mumbai and if Chepauk, the home of the controversial yet successful Chennai Super Kings franchise, is ruled out to host any of the five matches - three home games of Super Kings, a qualifier and the eliminator - then the Jharkhand State Cricket Association stadium in Ranchi will be the likely replacement.
The home ground of Super Kings and India captain MS Dhoni, which was Super Kings' base during last year's Champions League, has been allotted two of the five home games for the IPL side this season.
The legality of the reconstruction of stands has been questioned ever since the Chepauk was renovated ahead of the 2011 World Cup. Most of the matches played in Chennai after the World Cup have been played with the disputed stands locked out.
Amol Karhadkar is a correspondent at ESPNcricinfo