Due to the out break of corona virus many sports event including IPL has been postponed. The cash-rich IPL has been scheduled to begin from March 29. Due to the corona issue and visa restriction BCCI announced to host the IPL in the mid of April.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday met the Indian Premier League franchises owners at the Board headquarters here in Mumbai to discuss the Novel Corona Virus (COVID-19) outbreak and its impact on the upcoming season.
Called-off if it misses April 20
An BCCI official hints that IPL would cancelled if it misses April 20 deadline. Due to the uncontrollable spread many events have been called off globally. The BCCI took this decision on behalf of the safety measure to prevent the spread of corona virus.
“The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to suspend IPL 2020 till 15th April 2020, as a precautionary measure against the ongoing Novel Corona Virus (COVID-19) situation. The BCCI is concerned and sensitive about all its stakeholders, and public health in general, and it is taking all necessary steps to ensure that, all people related to IPL including fans have a safe cricketing experience. The BCCI will work closely with the Government of India along with the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and all other relevant Central and State Government departments in this regard,” the BCCI said in a statement yesterday.
“If at all the IPL starts, it would be around April 20 but the decision will be made around April 10. If the tournament doesn’t start by April 20, it will have to be deferred till the next year,” an IPL official said when speaking about the latest developments.
“Besides players, most teams have foreigners in its coaching staff. Since the visa issue is unresolved, they were not so keen on starting the tournament without coaches, not just the players,” the official added.
Cut Short if it happens
The BCCI President Sourav Ganguly on Saturday said that the upcoming edition of Indian Premier League will be cut short if it happens, news agency PTI reported. Speaking to reporters in Mumbai after the meeting, BCCI President said ,“It will happen, because if it is April 15, then, in any case 15 days are gone, it has to be truncated. How truncated, how many games, I can’t say at the moment.”
Previous Announcement
Earlier, on Friday, Ganguly had spoken to reporters and had said that postponing the tournament was the only way to go as “first priority is safety” for everyone.
“Let’s stick to the postponement (at the moment). First priority is safety, so we postponed the games,” he had said. On being asked if IPL franchises were happy with the call, he had added: “Nobody has a choice.”
According to reports, the BCCI and IPL is set to take a massive hit in case the IPL gets called off this season with the figure envisaged to hit the roof of Rs.10, 000 crore with over 200 brands brought on board for IPL 2020. A lump sum of Rs. 400 crore will be lost on ticket sales solely while a further Rs.300 were shelved out by Star Sports as they have the telecast rights for the ongoing edition of the league.
