Brijesh Patel, the chairman of the Indian Premier League (IPL) governing council, confirmed that they are ready to go ahead with the 13th edition of the tournament and are waiting for an official announcement from the ICC on the fate of the T20 World Cup in Australia.
The IPL 2020 was supposed to begin on March 29 with MI taking on CSK in Mumbai, but the Coronavirus pandemic brought all plans to a screeching halt and the tournament had to be postponed indefinitely as the country went into complete lockdown.
But with restrictions being loosened by the government on public and sporting activities after an extended lockdown, things are beginning to clear on the organization of the IPL, even if it happens in empty stadiums.
BCCI going ahead with its plans to hold IPL later this year: Sourav Ganguly to state associations
"We are ready to go ahead with the IPL. But we can start planning the schedule formally only after the official announcement is made on the T20 World Cup, which I'm expecting will arrive anytime soon. On our part, we've already earmarked the September-October window for the tournament to be played,” Brijesh Patel said in an interview with Times of India.
The ICC is expected to take a final decision on the T20 World Cup in Australia in a meeting that has been deferred to June 14.
"The meeting was rescheduled for Monday because it got very late on Wednesday and couldn't conclude," those in the know of developments said.
"Right now, we're saying it's tentative because finalities of the schedule can only be worked out once official confirmations arrive. Talks are going on with the league's multiple stakeholders and we're all on board. So, it's a matter of time before we start putting things in place," the GC chairman said.
Patel also spoke about the possibility of holding the tournament out of the country, if needed to be. "We have to watch how things are going to play out over the next month from a COVID perspective. We don't mind shifting the IPL to another country, either in part or in full. There are other aspects to be considered here," he said.
"Suppose we shift just the first leg out of the country, we will have to go through quarantine when we fly there. But we may probably also have to go through another quarantine when we're back for the India's leg, if COVID doesn't relent. Or who knows, by October things will be different. Let's see. Right now, we're not ruling out the idea of playing the whole tournament overseas," Patel said.
IPL 2020: UAE expresses interest in hosting IPL 13 if BCCI decides to shift league out of India
The tournament needs to be concluded in October as the India team will leave for Australia for the 4-Test series and has to undergo a quarantine period before the series begins down under.
"If the IPL has to begin in September, there'll be a threat of monsoon. Whatever the case, logistics will have to be worked out carefully. Whether in India or overseas, the tournament won't be played at more than two or three venues because it's only for television," says Patel.
The Emirates Cricket Board (UAE) and Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) have both offered to host the tournament if the BCCI decides to shift it overseas.
The front runner to this seems to be UAE as BCCI has already hosted a leg of the tournament there in 2014 and secondly, grounds in Dubai and Abu Dhabi are far away from the city. Third, the weather is more accommodating.
"Also remember, wherever the IPL is played, it'll be played to empty stands. So, as long as it's available prime time for Indian fans, it shouldn't be a problem," Patel added.
"As long as the full tournament is played and is available to Indian viewers on prime time and there's no gap in the middle of the tournament because of a repetition of quarantine or such, they're (Star) going to be fine with it," say industry executives.
