Sunrisers Hyderabad head into their opening game of the IPL season without banned skipper David Warner.
The Australian has been a key man for Sunrisers in the recent seasons but was thrown out by the IPL in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal.
New Zealand ace Kane Williamson takes over as the team’s skipper while England opener Alex Hales was bought as Warner’s replacement.
The scandal has also affected Rajasthan Royals’ preparations for the campaign.
Steve Smith stood down as the Royals’ captain as a result of his part in the shameful episode before also being banned IPL chiefs.
South Africa wicketkeeper-batsman Heinrich Klaasen has taken his spot in the team while India middle-order batsman Ajinkya Rahane will captain the side.
Sunrisers Hyderabad won the IPL in 2016 while Rajasthan Royals have not tasted glory since their triumph in the maiden season in 2008.
IPL 2018 live TV coverage
Sky Sports announced in January that they had agreed a “multi-year extension” to their current contract to show the IPL in the UK.
Every single one of the 60 IPL games in 2018 will be live on Sky Sports Cricket while some matches, including the final, will also be shown on Sky Sports Main Event.
In India, the broadcasting rights are owned by Star Sports. Star India will broadcast the IPL in six different languages – English, Hindi, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Bengali – across their 10 channels.
Sky Sports Cricket is Channel 404 on a Sky box.
IPL 2018 live stream
Sky Sports’ coverage means that all the action can be followed on your desktop or laptop via the Sky Go app.
It is available to download on iOS and Android smartphone and tablet devices.
Sky Go is also available on a number of platforms including Amazon Fire devices, iPad, Mac computers and laptops, Playstation 3, PS4 and Xbox One.
The Sky Sports app, available to download on iOS and Android devices, will also be providing live text coverage and updates.
If you’re not currently a Sky Sports customer but can’t stand to miss out on the action, you can add the channels to your box via a NOW TV subscription.
Day passes, which let you add Sky Sports channels for 24 hours, start at £6.99 a day, with a weekly pass starting from £10.99, and no locking in to a contract.
NOW TV doesn’t even require a typical television to use, as it is also available on a NOW TV Box, Chromecast, PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Roku, LG Smart TV, PC or Mac, and selected mobile and tablet devices.
