The world's most glamorous T20 tournament is back on Saturday as the Indian Premier League returns.
Cricketing superstars from around the globe will descend on India for the 15th edition of the franchise competition.
With two new teams - Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans - added and a shake-up of the squads following the mega-auction, 2022 promises to bring a combination of freshness and familiarity as Virat Kohli, Jos Buttler and co duke it out over the next two months.
The 2021 edition started behind closed doors and finished in the UAE last year, but this year the always vociferous IPL fans will be back. Venues will be limited to 25% capacity initially but the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is confident that number will increase as the tournament progresses.
Stumped podcast: The IPL expansion
The format
There are now 10 franchises representing different cities in India, with matches taking place at four neutral venues across two cities: three in Mumbai and one in Pune.
The teams have been split into two virtual groups after being seeded based on the number of times they have won the IPL or made the finals.
Group A is made up of Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants, with Chennai Super Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans comprising Group B.
The opening game sees a repeat of the 2021 final as defending champions Chennai meet Kolkata.
Each team will play 14 matches in the league phase, taking on every team in their group and the equivalent side in the other group twice, facing the other four sides only once.
The top four sides will go through to the play-offs, with the final scheduled for 29 May.
Can new captain Jadeja lead Chennai to victory?
After claiming their fourth IPL title in Dubai last year, Chennai will be targeting a record-equalling fifthto move level with Mumbai Indians.
While he may no longer be their captain after passing the leadership to Ravindra Jadeja, Chennai can still rely on the tactical nous, experience behind the stumps and calming influence of MS Dhoni.
Moeen Ali is another very cool customer and having played a key role in last year's triumph, the England all-rounder will be back with the men in yellow.
As ever, Chennai have generally gone with experience over youth with Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo and Ambati Rayudu returning and Chris Jordan and Devon Conway joining a healthy core of 30-somethings.
Kolkata have gone in a different direction, opting against retaining former captain Eoin Morgan and handing the captaincy to new arrival Shreyas Iyer.
Alex Hales' withdrawal has left them with a position to fill at the top of the order but there is another Englishman, Sam Billings, who would be more than happy to step in, although he will have to get past Aaron Finch and KKR stalwart Sunil Narine first.
West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell has also been retained; Pat Cummins is back after missing the second leg of last year's competition while Ajinkya Rahane is among the notable additions as they aim to go one better than in 2021.
Kohli back in the ranks as RCB aim to break their duck
There was no fairytale ending for Kohli in his last season as captain with RCB coming up short again in their pursuit of a first IPL crown.
Kohli now reverts to the role of star batter with the incoming Faf du Plessis, player of the match for Chennai in last year's final, taking over as skipper.
There is an AB de Villiers shaped hole that will be nigh on impossible to fill following the South African legend's retirement but in Kohli, Du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell they still possess ample batting power.
Bowling has been Bangalore's weakness over the years but Harshal Patel was the leading wicket-taker in last year's competition, Josh Hazlewood provides further firepower to the seam attack and Sri Lanka leg-spinning all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga looks a shrewd acquisition.
Delhi are another side still searching for a first title. They have been the nearly men over the past two years, performing well in the group stage but then unable to get the job done in the play-offs.
Led by Rishabh Pant, arguably the most exciting and explosive player on the planet, Delhi still have a core of talented Indian players with opener Prithvi Shaw and left-arm spinner Axar Patel chief among them.
Aussie duo David Warner and Mitch Marsh will have big roles to play, as will India seamer Shardul Thakur, a winner with CSK in 2021.
Royals and Kings ready to compete after overhauls?
In recent years, Rajasthan have been the 'English' team of the IPL but with Ben Stokes ruling himself out of the tournament, Jofra Archer gone (and injured in any case) and Liam Livingstone earning himself a big payday elsewhere, Buttler is the last Englishman standing.
After a disappointing seventh-place in 2021,