Explained! Why some teams are playing each other only once in the IPL 2024 league stage

Chennai Super Kings emerged victorious with a gripping 20-run win against Mumbai Indians, despite Rohit Sharma's stellar century in a pulsating encounter at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.

Chasing a target of 207, Mumbai Indians fell short, managing only 186/6 in their allotted 20 overs, with Rohit Sharma remaining unbeaten on a magnificent 105 off 63 balls. Matheesha Pathirana starred with the ball for CSK, claiming four crucial wickets.

The fixture also marked a significant moment as it could potentially be MS Dhoni's last IPL match at the Wankhede Stadium. Dhoni, in scintillating form, showcased his prowess by smashing Hardik Pandya for three consecutive sixes in the final over of the CSK innings.

Why some teams, like MI and CSK, are playing only once in the league stage

This fixture, held on Sunday, marked the only scheduled meeting between the two powerhouse franchises, raising questions about Dhoni's future appearances at the iconic venue.

The unique format of the IPL 2024 season, introduced following the debut of Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants in 2022, sees teams divided into two groups.

With MI and CSK allocated to different groups, they were slated to face each other only once during the league phase.

Under this format, each team is set to play eight matches within their respective groups, engaging in home and away fixtures against the other four sides. Then franchises participate in four matches against teams from the opposing group, either at home or away.

In addition to that, team confronts one side from the other group twice, both at home and away, with the team and match allocation determined through a random draw.

For example: CSK will play their group members twice - that's two matches each against SRH, RCB, PBKS and GT. Then they will face one match each against MI, KKR, RR and DC from the opposing group. Additionally, CSK will play LSG, from the other group, twice, making it a 14 matches league affair for the team.

IPL 2024 Groups

With this victory, Chennai Super Kings climbed to the third position in the IPL 2024 points table, accumulating eight points from six games. Mumbai Indians are at eighth spot after suffering their fourth defeat so far.