India Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 announced that the country will be under complete lockdown for the next 21 days amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which effectively means that the 13th edition of IPL won’t begin from April 15.
Earlier this month, IPL 2020 was rescheduled from March 29 to April 15 due to the Coronavirus outbreak as the BCCI was hoping that the situation would improve.
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However, as per a latest report published in The Indian Express, it’s certain now that the Indian Premier League will not happen this year owing to the deadly virus. The report also claims that the Indian board is waiting for an announcement from the central government and sports ministry on visas before it makes the news official.
The Indian government has suspended all foreign visas until April 15. If the same report is to go by, there will be no mega auction next year. Instead, the status quo will be continued and IPL franchises will be allowed to pick players if they want too.
According to the norms, the mega auction was supposed to take place in 2021 with franchises allowed to retain a few players while the rest were supposed to go under the hammer.
“IPL will not happen this year. It will now happen next year. We all know how the situation is at the moment in the country and no one will take any risk. One can’t have social distancing in the stadium. It’s better to play IPL next year. Also, no mega auction will take place. We will inform the franchises once we get final confirmation from the Indian government, the same season can continue next season,” a source in the IPL administration quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
As of March 30, the COVID-19 crisis has claimed more than 33,000 lives and infected over 723,000 people globally.
In India, around 1100 confirmed cases have been reported while 29 people have lost their lives thus far.
“The BCCI along with all the IPL franchises have reiterated BCCI’s stand of putting the safety and well-being of fans, athletes, and employees as a priority. The board will continue to monitor and work closely with the Government of India, state governments and other states regulatory bodies to decide on the future course of action in the best interest of public health,” BCCI secretary Jay Shah had said in a statement.
“… humanity first, everything else comes second. The situation has not improved so there is no point in even talking about it. If IPL doesn’t happen so be it,” Kings XI Punjab co-owner Ness Wadia had told PTI.
