New Delhi, India (BBN)- Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders will begin Indian Premier League (IPL) 2013 by hosting Delhi Daredevils at Eden Gardens in Kolkata  on April 3. 
The 76-game league will have the same format as it did in the 2012 season, with each of the nine teams playing the others home and away, before the playoffs, according to reports.
One of the many highlights of the sixth edition of the tournament will be the debut of Sunrisers Hyderabad, who joined the IPL fraternity in October this year.
They will begin their IPL innings with a home game against Pune Warriors India on April 5.
The top four teams at the end of the round-robin stage on May 19 will qualify for the playoffs. The Qualifier 1 will be played in Chennai between the top two teams in the league and the winner of that match will secure a place in the final, in Kolkata on May 26. 
 
The Qualifier 1 and Eliminator games will be played at the M A Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai – the home ground of the IPL 2012 runners-up – on May 21 and May 22 respectively.
The Qualifier 2 encounter and the Final, will be played at the Eden Gardens – the home ground of the 2012 edition winners – on May 24 and 26 respectively.
 
BBN/SSR/AD-22Dec12-12:10 pm (BST)