Cuttack: Odisha Cricket Association (OCA) is all set to host Odisha Cricket League (OCL) at the iconic Barabati Stadium here from June 30.
OCA Vice President Pankaj Lochan Mohanty has announced the schedule of the tournament, which will be conducted in T20 format, The final is scheduled to take place July 17. All the matches will be played at the Barabati Stadium here.
A total of six teams — Odisha Lions, Odisha Tigers, Odisha Jaguars, Odisha Pumas, Odisha Panthers, and Odisha Cheetahs — will vie for the OCL crown, said Shri Mohanty.
Lions, Tigers, Jaguars, Pumas, Panthers and Cheetahs will be led by Suryakant Pradhan, Rakesh Pattanaik, Shantanu Mishra, Kartik Biswal, Sandeep Pattanaik and Biplab Samantaray, respectively.
The T20 tournament will feature as many as 33 matches, including semifinals and the final. Every team will play 10 league matches each — two against each opposition team — in the league stage, followed by the Semi Finals and Finals. A total of 33 matches will be played in the tournament.
Sanjay Behera, Secretary OCA was also present in the meeting.
All the matches will be live streamed on OCA’s YouTube Channel and Facebook page, he said.
Shri Behera said that the top performers from the league will get the chance to represent Odisha in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy — the national T20 tournament.
Like IPL, the OCA for the first time has decided to introduce the red and green caps for maximum wicket takers and highest run scorers. Likewise, the DRS and Impact Player rules will also be followed in the tournament for the first time.
The player of the Match for every match will get prize money of Rs. 5,000 and the player of the series will get prize money of Rs. 30,000. Best Batsman and Best Bowler will be given prize money of Rs. 20,000 each.
Red and Green Caps will be given to the leading run-getter and wicket-taker respectively. The impact player rule will be applied during the OCL-2024.