Deccan Chargers is a defunct IPL franchise which was based in the city of Hyderabad. The franchise was one of the eight inaugural members of the IPL in 2008 and winner of 2009. It was owned by Deccan Chronicle Holdings Ltd. After finishing at the bottom of the points table in the first season, they won the second season held in South Africa in 2009 under the captaincy of former Australian wicket-keeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist. Gilchrist was the captain of the team for the first three seasons of the IPL with Rohit Sharma as his deputy. From the fourth season, Kumar Sangakkara led the team and Cameron White played as his deputy. The team was coached by former Australian cricketer Darren Lehmann.

The Indian Premier League (IPL), also known as the TATA IPL for sponsorship reasons, is a men's Twenty20 (T20) cricket league held annually in India. Founded by the BCCI in 2007, the league features ten city-based franchise teams. The IPL usually takes place during the summer, between March and May each year. It has an exclusive window in the ICC Future Tours Programme, resulting in fewer international cricket tours occurring during the IPL seasons.