The weather in Ahmedabad is currently gloomy and there are chances of rain throughout the evening even as the final of the Indian Premier League is scheduled to take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in the city. There are chances that the rain gods would prevail over the wishes of the fans to see a full-fledged final between MS Dhoni led Chennai Super Kings and Hardik Pandya’s Gujarat Titans.
Presuming that the rain does play spoilsport and the IPL 2023 Final gets washed out tonight, what are the procedures for finding a winner?
Rain stops and the pitch is ready for play by 10:10 pm IST
As per the Indian Premier League’s Governing Council’s rules and regulations for playoff games, the final can start as late as 10:10 pm IST without the overs being reduced and with the timeout intact. This is because an extra 120 minutes have been added to playing time for the final and the playoffs.
Rain stops and the ground is ready for play by 12:26 am IST
In case the rain stops and the ground gets ready for play by 12:26 am IST, then five overs a side encounter can be played to find out the winner.
Provision for a reserve day
Even if five overs a side game cannot be completed on Sunday, the game would move to reserve day i.e. Monday, May 29, 2023. If any ball had been bowled and the match was started on Sunday, then it will continue from the same point on Monday. However, if only the toss had taken place and no play was possible, a fresh toss will be conducted and teams would be allowed to put out fresh playing 11s for the game that would begin at 08:00 pms IST on Monday at the same venue.
What if it rains even on reserve day?
If the rain begins on a reserve day too and the match is unable to get finished in the stipulated three hours and 20 minutes plus the added two hours, then the umpires would try and asses the pitch again. If found suitable, a super over will be conducted to decide the winner. This is not the ideal case scenario, but if a super over is also not possible, then the highest placed team in the points table after the end of the league stage, which is Gujarat Titans, will be declared champions.
