The Decision Was Taken To Avoid Clash With IPL 2020:

The Coronavirus pandemic has caused a big disruption in the sporting calendar across the globe. Although major European football leagues have stretched their seasons past the normal deadlines, cricketers are still trying to find a way out of the COVID muddle.

According to the media reports, the ECB is expected to postpone England’s tour of India – scheduled to begin in September – as the Cricket Control Board of India (BCCI) is preparing to organize the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the last week of September. England’s tour of India consisted of three ODIs and as many T20Is, starting on September 16, but the fixtures in the midst of the COIVD-19 pandemic are set to see the bilateral series postponed.

With the decision on this year’s T20 World Cup due this month, the BCCI will be looking to schedule the 13th edition of the IPL in the September-October-November timeframe. Understandably, Indian players will be engaged in their respective franchises in the T20 league, but a number of English players are also required to be part of the T20 competition, given that the government clearances come in.

No cricket has been possible in India since the beginning of the Coronavirus outbreak in mid-March. BCCI President Sourav Ganguly announced earlier that hosting the IPL this year remains the top priority of the Board of Directors.

Nevertheless, the present situation of COVID-19 in India remains as complicated as it can be. Nearly every single day, the county records a record increase in the number of cases. The situation has been such that the BCCI is also open to hosting the IPL in countries such as Sri Lanka or the UAE that have more or less managed to bring the virus under control.