The Board of Control for Cricket in India is well set to host the Indian Premier League 2020. If not possible in India. Then may be abroad. So hints the board treasurer Arun Dhumal.
The International Cricket Council and Cricket Australia are all but set to postpone the ICC T20 World Cup 2020. The Indian Government has allowed to use sports facilities in the country without spectators. There are enough indicators for a possibility of the Indian Premier League’s 13th edition taking place in October-November, the ready window expected to emerge from postponement of the T20 World Cup.
But rapidly rising novel coronavirus infection cases in the country, with the total number of infected people going past two lakh, remain one grave concern over. The scale of daily additions is rising fast and there are no possibility in sight about when the graph could flatten. That seems to be the one prime reason when Board of Control for Cricket in India captain Sourav Ganguly said that the BCCI has not even discussed the IPL schedule.
But the board seems determined to host the IPL 2020. If not in India then abroad, hints treasurer Arun Dhumal.
Dhumal, board’s de facto spokesperson for the past few months, in an interview to Times Now has revealed that the if all goes well the BCCI will prefer to host the IPL in India. In an obvious reference to the COVID-19 threat, he confessed that if there were any concerns about players’ safety and security the league might be hosted abroad.
The IPL has been hosted overseas in the past and it could happen again this year, hinted Dhumal. “We have done it in the past in South Africa. We may not want to do it willingly but if that’s the only possibility then there is not much anyone can do about it.”
Momentum is gradually building to host the IPL 2020 if the World Cup in Australia does not take place this year. Australia batting great Steve Smith is among the international cricketers who are willing to play IPL in the absence of the World Cup.
Former Australian skipper Mark Taylor too had said that the IPL should be accommodated in the scheduled period for the World Cup, if the event in Australia did not happen this year.
Cricket Australia is all set to resume international series and eagerly awaiting to host India during the summer Down Under. But, it is not prepared to host the global competition due to logistic concerns for players and media from 16 countries amidst the novel coronavirus threat.