The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had no choice but to postpone the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Tuesday due to the second wave of COVID-19 sweeping India. However, the board wants to end the league before the T20 World Cup in September. A senior BCCI official familiar with the situation told ANI that if the COVID-19 situation is under control by September, the 14th edition of the tournament can be completed.
In October and November, the T20 World Cup will be held in India.
When asked about the condition about the return of the league’s international players, the official said: “As previously stated by the BCCI, it will be assured that all players return home safely. The planning is underway, and a good description of their travel paths will be available by tomorrow.”
Earlier in the day, BCCI Secretary Jay Shah said that the BCCI and IPL Governing Council agreed to postpone the league due to the present COVID-19 condition.
“The BCCI and the IPL GC have agreed to delay the season of 2021 until further notice. We don’t want to jeopardise the welfare of the players, participants, staff, groundskeepers, match officials, or anyone else involved “ANI quoted him as saying.
Following COVID-19 cases in two franchises on Monday, SunRisers Hyderabad wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha tested positive on Tuesday morning. Two members of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) contingent tested positive, while two Kolkata Knight Riders players, Varun Chakaravarthy and Sandeep Warrier, tested positive, causing the BCCI to postpone the KKR-RCB match in Ahmedabad.
The game between SRH and the reigning champions Mumbai Indians on Tuesday evening had to be postponed due to Saha’s positive test. The situation was made worse by the fact that the match between RCB and KKR had already been postponed, and the match between CSK and Rajasthan Royals was also scheduled to be postponed due to the Chennai unit’s stringent quarantine.