M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai to host Duleep Trophy final from Sept. 6 to 10

Chennai’s M.A. Chidambaram Stadium will host the final of the Duleep Trophy from September 6 to 10. The BCCI has moved the summit clash from Bengaluru to allow fans a chance to watch the country’s top players in action.

The board had initially planned to stage the entire tournament at its Centre of Excellence (CoE) in the Garden City, but only the quarterfinals and semifinals will now be held on the CoE campus. Last year the Duleep Trophy was held fully behind closed doors at the CoE, much to the disappointment of the fans. Earlier this month, BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia had explained there were restrictions on allowing fans at the CoE but had promised to consider hosting the final alone in a proper stadium. "There are some government restrictions on how we use this land, and because of that, we cannot have crowds in this campus," Saikia had explained.

Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium was also under consideration before the board decided to shift the final to the MAC Stadium. That decision separates the final’s venue from the matches remaining at the CoE.

The two quarterfinals will be played from August 23 to 26, with East Zone taking on North-East and North facing West. Those quarterfinal matches will be staged at the CoE campus.

The winners of the quarterfinals will meet last year’s winner Central Zone and runner-up South Zone respectively in the semifinals, which are scheduled from August 30 to September 2. The semifinals will also be held on the CoE campus.

The Duleep Trophy final is scheduled for September 6 to 10 at Chennai’s M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, after quarterfinals beginning August 23 and semifinals from August 30 to September 2.