The Fate Of The 2020 Men’s T20 World Cup, Which Is Set To Take Place In October-November, Has Not Been Determined Yet:
The meeting of the International Cricket Council on Thursday once again gave little weight, be it in relation to the nomination process to elect the successor of Chairman Shashank Manohar or the fate of the T20 World Cup which is currently scheduled to be held in Australia in the window of October-November. And the Board of Control for Cricket in India ( BCCI) has not impressed with this wait-and-watch approach.
After the meeting, an ICC board member told a leading media house that next week will finalize the selection process for the chairman ‘s seat. As for the T20 World Cup fate, the reaction was ‘what’s the hurry’ again.While this would mean nothing in a normal situation, but in the current scenario, one can not ignore that the BCCI has made no bones about the fact that while the showpiece event is the focus, if the T20 World Cup does not happen because of the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, they will be keen to keep IPL 13.
Talking to a leading media house, a BCCI official said the delaying tactics didn’t make much sense when statements came in not only from Cricket Australia — hosts of the T20 World Cup — but also from chairman Ehsan Mani, ICC’s Financial and Commercial Affairs Committee (F&CA).
“Such incessant delays in finalizing the election process and also in the decision on the T20 World Cup suggest that the leadership of the ICC is unable to take important decisions in a timely manner. ICC top brass needs to respond as to why they postpone the decision. It seems like the entire world, other than them, is aware that it is not feasible to conduct the tournament according to the current schedule” the official said.
IPL Chairman Brijesh Patel has made it clear that only after the ICC agrees on the T20 World Cup can the Indian board intend on a cash-rich season. “We ‘re looking at the September-October window but that’s subject to the Asia Cup and T20 World Cup postponement,” he said.
Though Earl Eddings, chairman of Cricket Australia, has already said hosting this year’s event is ‘unrealistic or very difficult,’ Mani echoed last week’s sentiments. “We’ve had a lot of conversations and the sense is it (T20 World Cup) wouldn’t be realistic this year. ICC has World Cups coming up in 2021 and 2023, so we have a gap year where we can change this case. God forbid if any player(s) fall ill or mishap happens during the game, it would have a huge effect and generate chaos in the world of cricket and we can’t take that chance.
“It’s feasible to tell a bilateral series like Pakistan in England to have a bio-bubble climate, but when 16 teams are involved it is very difficult,” the chairman of the PCB said. The tournament is expected to take place from October 18 to November 15 but due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, it has been shrouded in doubt.
But the strategy remained the same when it came to the ICC meeting with the international body preparing to stick with the policy of ‘wait and watch.’ In fact, when one of the full members raised the explanation behind the delay in decision-making, it is explained to a leading media house that the international body said it was to make sure the right call is made.
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