Bengaluru: The Karbonn Smartphones Karnataka Premier League 2017, powered by Cycle Pure Agarbathies, will take off with a glittery opening ceremony at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, here this evening. The opening ceremony will feature ‘Power Star’ Puneeth Rajkumar, Sharmiela Mandre and other sandalwood stars.

This year, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) has roped in Star Sports to be the official broadcaster of the tournament which makes it more exciting to watch. The commentary panel will have cricket greats like Brett Lee, Michael Hussey, Daniel Vettori and Dean Jones along with our own Venkatesh Prasad, Sunil Joshi, Fazal Khaleel, V.B. Chandrashekar and noted sports presenter Charu Sharma. The telecast will also be presented by noted anchors Mayanti Langer and Sanjana Ganesan.

Soon after in the inaugural ceremony, the first match of KPL-2017 will played between Hubli Tigers and Belagavi Panthers at 7 pm. KSCA has also joined hands with Isha Foundation for the campaign Rally for Rivers, launched to create awareness for saving rivers.

While the first leg of the tournament is just for a couple of days on Sept. 1 and 2 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, the second-leg will be played at the SDNR Wadiyar Stadium in Mysuru (Sept. 4 to Sept. 12) and the final-leg at KSCA Stadium in Hubballi (Sept. 14 to Sept.23).

This year will mark the comeback of Bengaluru franchise in the tournament since 2014. The franchise has now been bought by Bengaluru-based Kalyani Motors for the sixth edition KPL and team has been named Kalyani Blasters Bengaluru. Meanwhile, tournament will not feature Mangaluru United and Rockstars, the team led by actor ‘Kiccha’ Sudeep.

A total of seven teams ­­— Mysuru Warriors, Belagaavi Panthers, Hubli Tigers, Bijapur Bulls, Bellary Tuskers, Namma Shivamogga and Kalyani Bengaluru Blasters — will battle for the coveted trophy.

Mysuru Warriors will start     their campaign on Sept. 2 (tomorrow) when the play against Kalyani Bengaluru Blasters at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

First match at the SDNR Stadium in Mysuru will feature home team Mysuru Warriors taking on Bijapur Bulls on Sept. 4 while defending champions Bellary Tuskers begin their title defence against Namma Shivamogga on Sept. 5.

The SDNR Wadiyar stadium will host 12 matches in all before the tournament heads to its last leg at KSCA Rajnagar Stadium in Hubballi where the matches will be held from Sept. 13 to Sept. 23.

With a total of 21 matches being played in the league stage, the top four teams will qualify for the semi-finals to be held on Sept. 20 and Sept. 22. The final match will be held on Sept. 23.

Today’s Match

Hubli Tigers Vs Belagavi Panthers

Venue: M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, 7 pm

Tomorrow’s Match

Bengaluru Blasters Vs Mysuru Warriors (Bengaluru)

Venue: M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, 7 pm

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