IPL Could Be Cancelled This Year If April 20 Deadline Missed: IPL Official

The Indian Premier League (IPL) became the latest high-profile sporting event to be affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The thirteenth edition of the league was set to get underway on March 29 in Mumbai. But in the wake of the outbreak, the BCCI suspended IPL 2020 till April 15 in order to tackle the growing threat of the Coronavirus.

The BCCI announced the decision on Friday. At first, there were reports suggesting that the IPL might take place behind closed doors. But taking possibly the right step, the Indian cricket board decided to postpone the cash-rich league for some time.

“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,” said a press release.

“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,” it further added.

No IPL a possibility:

At a time when nothing is clear as far as the future of the IPL is concerned, an IPL official has revealed that the league might get cancelled altogether this year if it misses the April 20 deadline.

“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,” the official told Sportstar.

According to the official, the “six-week window from April 21 till May 31” is sufficient to host 60 matches with “multiple double-headers”. But a decision on whether the IPL could go ahead will depend on the “extent of the virus infection by first week of April”.

The report further claimed that no one in the BCCI is certain on whether the 13th edition will be played or not. It further quoted the IPL official as saying that the authorities informally consulted with the franchisees and some of the big teams were hesitant to start the IPL as per schedule without any overseas participation.

“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 revealed.

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