Mumbai Indians set to face CSK in IPL 2020 opener on March 29, final on May 24

The much-anticipated Indian Premier League (IPL) is all set to kickstart on March 29, just 11 days after India's home ODI series against South Africa. According to reports, the first match will be between defending champions Mumbai Indians and runners up of the last edition Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede Stadium. While the governing body is yet to make a final announcement, reports have suggested that the final has been scheduled for May 24, with the schedule for knockouts to be released later. 

In contrast with the previous editions, no double-headers have been scheduled on Saturdays for the upcoming season. To accommodate the extra matches, the league phase has been stretched to 50 days instead of the usual 44 days. The last league game is expected to be played on May 17, between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians in Bengaluru. 

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'An IPL All-Stars Game three days before the start of IPL'

"In a noble gesture, the BCCI will have an 'All-Stars Game' between all top international players before the start of the IPL on March 29 for a charitable cause. The venue for the game, though, has not been decided as yet. BCCI will hand over the proceeds to an appropriate forum," former India captain Sourav Ganguly said. "There will be an IPL All-Stars Game three days before the start of IPL. The venue is not Ahmedabad as it still not match ready. We have not decided on where we will make the donation," the BCCI president said.

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'The final will be held in Mumbai on May 24'

"The matches will continue to be at 8 pm and not 7:30 pm. There will be five doubleheader matches and the IPL final will be held in Mumbai on May 24. In a first, concussion substitute and 'third umpire no-ball' will also be introduced in the upcoming edition of the popular T20 league. The concussion substitute and the no-ball rule are new additions for the season," Ganguly told the media persons after a three-hour IPL governing council meeting which he attended.

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