IPL 2021: Maharashtra Curfew Situation And It's Impact On The Marquee T20 League

With the number of COVID-19 infections or cases rising in Maharashtra, the state government had to impose night curfews. The recent 10-15 days has witnessed several cities in Maharashtra undergo an alarming rise in the COVID-19 instances, forcing the government to take a drastic step. And interestingly, Maharashtra is not only the place for the final ODI between India and England on Sunday but also one of those in IPL 2021, set to start from the 9th of April.

A year ago, the 13th edition of IPL was scheduled to begin from the 19th of March; however, the rising threat of the COVID-19 outbreak postponed it. BCCI had it rescheduled for the 15th of April. Still, with the situation not improving, they had to defer it indefinitely until the opportunity came to conduct it in the UAE from September. A year from then, as the second wave of COVID-19 dawns upon India, it threatens to impact the cash-rich league.

According to the Maharashtra Government’s order, the night curfew kickstarts from the 28th of March and there’s no end date yet. The announcement prohibits people’s gathering in public places from 8 pm to 7 am, while places like malls would be shut down. While public movement or travelling remains allowed during this time, five or more people cannot gather. Nevertheless, it’s unclear how much the decision affects the upcoming edition of IPL.

BCCI addresses the curfew situation in Maharashtra ahead of IPL 2021:

BCCI admitted that the Maharashtra government has imposed the curfew; however, they are yet to see the complete order to be aware of the restrictions. As far as the logistics matters go, the matches start at 7:30 pm and the players leave the stadium at 12:30 am. Thus, it could affect the staffs, broadcast crews, and ground staff’s logistics unless the government exempts them from the restrictions.

“Yes we are hearing about the night curfew in Maharashtra, but we are yet to see the full order by the Maharashtra Government. At this stage, we are not aware about the entire restrictions imposed. Also, we don’t know for how long the night curfew has been imposed,” a BCCI official said as quoted by Times Now.

The restrictions could become even stricter in Mumbai and Maharashtra if the situation does not come under control. On Friday, the state reported its highest rise in a day 36,902 COVID-19 cases, while Mumbai also witnessed a steep surge of 5513 infections. In fact, Maharashtra has the highest number of COVID-19 cases in India. Mumbai will host the second match of IPL on the 10th of April between Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Capitals.

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