Breaking News: IPL 2020 Postponed To April 15 Amid Coronavirus Scare

Amid the novel coronavirus scare, the IPL 2020 has been postponed to April 15 from the original date, according to a report in espncricinfo. The step has been taken as a precautionary measure amid the widespread novel coronavirus, which has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

BCCI President Sourav Ganguly took the decision on IPL 2020

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah took the decision to postpone the tournament after the Maharashtra, Delhi and Karnataka government opposed to host the tournament in their cities.

“The decision to postpone the tournament, which was scheduled to start on March 29, was taken by the BCCI top brass lead by its president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah and top management of the IPL in the wake of the advice given by various arms of the Indian government,” espncricinfo reported

Allow foreign players to come in before April 15

The fresh visa advisory from the government has made it almost impossible for foreign players to join their respective teams before April 15.

“See, the gate money is no issue as these things are insured. As for the fans, it is disappointing, but we don’t really have much of an option as we have to abide by the diktat of the central government and even WHO has declared the outbreak a “pandemic”.

“This makes it clear that if we have to have an IPL this year, it has to be behind closed doors. So now, would we rather want an IPL where fans can watch the games on television or we don’t want an IPL in 2020? So, we are okay with that, but the BCCI must sit down and speak to the central government to make an exception and allow the foreign players to come in before April 15 as the IPL loses its sheen otherwise,” the official said.

According to a report in espncricinfo, the tournament is likely to be played behind closed doors.