Chennai: The Indian Premier League (IPL) is getting bigger, but is it getting better? We will have to wait for 51 days and 74 matches to find the answer. But if the tournament’s proliferation (from eight to ten teams) is any indication, the league has caught everyone’s imagination.

The teams, this year, have been divided into two groups of five sides each. They will play 70 league matches plus four play-off games.

Each team will play 14 league games. The other four teams in its group twice — home and away, as before; four of the five teams in the other group once — home or away; and the fifth team in the other group twice — home and away. The match-ups have been decided by a random draw of lots.

The No. 1 team at the end of the league stage will play No. 2 in play-off Game A, which is effectively a semi-final. The No. 3 side plays No. 4 in play-off Game B. The Game A winner goes straight into the title-round, but the twist is that the Game B winner plays the Game A loser to decide the second finalist.