'Unsung heroes': BCCI announces cash rewards for IPL's groundsmen and curators

New Delhi: Describing them as "unsung heroes", BCCI secretary Jay Shah on Monday announced that groundsmen and curators of all the 10 regular IPL venues will be given Rs 25 lakh each as a token of appreciation for providing "brilliant pitches" during the league.

The IPL concluded in Chennai on Sunday with Kolkata Knight Riders lifting their third overall trophy with an eight-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad.

"The unsung heroes of our successful T20 season are the incredible ground staff who worked tirelessly to provide brilliant pitches, even in difficult weather conditions," Shah posted on X.

"As a token of our appreciation, the groundsmen and curators at the 10 regular IPL venues will receive INR 25 lakhs each, and the same at the 3 additional venues will get INR 10 lakhs each. Thank you for your dedication and hard work!" he said.

The 10 regular venues for the IPL are Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Ahmedabad and Jaipur.

The additional venues this year were Guwahati, Visakhapatnam and Dharamsala. While Guwahati was the second home venue for Rajasthan Royals, Visakhapatnam hosted Delhi Capitals' first leg of home matches.

Dharamsala served as the second base for Kings XI Punjab. This year's IPL has been talked about for high-scoring matches with the peak team total record shattered twice. The 250-run mark was crossed as many as eight times this season.

Shah also congratulated KKR for their title triumph.

"Congratulations to the @KKRiders for clinching the 2024 #TATAIPL! The team showed great consistency throughout the tournament and kudos to @ShreyasIyer15 for leading the side brilliantly.

"Once again, thank you to the fans for coming out in big numbers and for making this yet another successful season!" he said.