The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has reportedly informed the franchises that this season’s Indian Premier League has been postponed indefinitely following the decision of the Indian government to continue the lockdown until May 3rd.
The government’s new move has left the organizers without any scope to hold the tournament during the regular time slot of the year.
Franchises Confirm The Postponement
Though the BCCI has not made any official announcement it has contacted all the stakeholders including the 8 franchises and broadcasters to convey the message that the IPL stands postponed and canceled.
A senior franchise official confirmed that the BCCI has intimated them that about the happening but are also hopeful of conducting the tournament in the latter part of the year when things return to a normal state.
“Yes, the BCCI has intimated us that IPL has been postponed for the time being but they are hopeful of finding a window later this year as and when things normalize,” he said.
It is said that BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah were waiting for the government directive and once the lockdown was prolonged till May 3 on Tuesday, they realized it was not possible of holding the IPL during its traditional April-May slot.
Ganguly has told repeatedly that people’s health is more important than the IPL.
There have been nearly over 10,000 cases of corona in India with 350 deaths at present which have made the government continue the lockdown.
Will World Cup Be Replaced By IPL?
The only available slot for the BCCI to conduct the mega event is between September and November given that the ICC would agree to reschedule the T20world cup which is supposed to be held from October 18th to November 15th.
The other alternative is to go ahead with a shortened IPL for six weeks in the months of September and early October as the chances of the Asia Cup taking place are very less.
