IPL 2018 hits a Cauvery snag in Chennai, CSK home games moved to Pune

In an unexpected turn of events, all the remaining home matches of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) during Vivo IPL 2018 have been shifted out of Chennai. Massive protests over the Cauvery water dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have forced the organisers to take this decision. The protests erupted ahead of the CSK-Kolkata Knight Riders match on April 10, 2018, following which the local administration said that it would not be able to provide adequate security under the prevailing conditions. 

The new venue for the CSK matches will be the Maharashtra Cricket Association’s International Stadium in Pune. Pune has roughly 8 days to get the stadium and logistics ready for the next CSK home match. Meanwhile, CSK is scheduled to play its next match against Kings XI Punjab in Mohali on April 15. 

CSK’s home match is scheduled for April 20 against Rajasthan Royals, which will now be played in Pune. The management of the Chennai franchise issued a statement yesterday (April11, 2018), where it said, “Ticket sales at the counter for Chennai Super Kings’ next home match in the 2018 Vivo IPL season against Rajasthan Royals at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on April 20 has been cancelled.” 

Tickets to the match for the lower tier of C, D and E stands were originally to be sold today (April 12). 

With this development, there’s bound to be significant implications for the advertisers who had bought space for in-stadium ads in Chennai. This is also a huge disappointment for Chennai-based CSK fans as not all of them would be able to go to Pune to watch the matches.