The suspense on IPL 2020 was finally sidelined by BCCI after they released a statement, confirming that 2020 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been postponed indefinitely. The decision comes at a time when country is going through a tough phase, amid coronavirus outbreak and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had decided to extend the lockdown till 3 May.
The BCCI has also not set a new window for the organization of the IPL and confirmed that the tournament will begin once the situation is under control. The season was expected to start from 29th March but the coronavirus ensured that it was pushed further and BCCI postponed it till 15th April. However, after the extension of lockdown, the plans bite the dust and BCCI finally came forward to confirm the news of the postponement of IPL.
However, Sri Lanka Cricket showed interest in hosting the season of IPL which currently uncertain in the wake up of coronavirus outbreak in India. Speaking to Lankadeepa Newspaper, Sri Lanka Cricket President Shammi Silva said that India is likely to look at Sri Lanka if the coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate the situations in India.
“If IPL is called off, Indian Cricket board and IPL stakeholders will have to bear a loss of more than USD 500 Million. So, it will be beneficial for them to conduct the league in another country as they did in 2009 in South Africa,” said Silva.
“If we get the go-ahead from them to this proposal, we are ready to provide all the facilities necessary under the supervision of Sri Lankan health authorities,” he added.
BCCI official reacts
The BCCI official said that the world has come to a standstill and in such a situation, the BCCI is in no position to say anything about organizing the 13th season of IPL. The official further said that the BCCI has got no proposal to host IPL 2020 from Sri Lanka Cricket board. There are currently 238 cases of Covid-19 in Sri Lanka in which 65 have recovered while 7 have lost their lives.
SLC can host IPL matches at the three venues- Galle, Kandy and Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, which will have more financial benefit than hosting India for a limited overs series in July.
The BCCI is currently keen to conduct IPL in September-October or October-November window. A former BCCI official who was involved in the decision to organize the 2009 season of IPL in South Africa said that the picture could change after Shashank Manohar steps down as ICC chairman in May.
