The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has reportedly finalized the dates for the resumption of the IPL 2021 season which had to be suspended in May due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the bio-bubble of franchises.
Now the BCCI has decided to move the remainder of the IPL 2021, i.e 31 matches including three playoffs and the final, to the UAE. And now ANI reported that the dates of the resumption and the final of the IPL 2021 tournament have been finalized.
The first game on resumption will be played on September 19 while the final will be hosted on October 15 - the day India will be celebrating Dussehra this year.
Speaking to ANI, a BCCI official in the know of developments of the recent meetings between the BCCI and the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) said the discussions went well and the Indian board is confident that the remaining IPL games will be held successfully in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.
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"The discussions went really well and with ECB already giving us the oral nod to host the event ahead of the BCCI SGM, it was about closing the deal over the last week. The first game after the season resumes will be held on September 19 while we will have the final on October 15. The BCCI was always keen on a 25-day window to finish the remaining matches," the official said.
The source also touched upon the situation with regards to the availability of the foreign players and mentioned that the BCCI expects positive outcomes from its talks with other national boards.
"The discussions have started and we are keeping fingers crossed that the foreign players will be mostly available. If a couple of them do not manage to turn up, we shall then decide on the future course of action. But keeping fingers crossed for now and hoping to have an action-packed end to the 14th edition in UAE," the official said.
Also, a franchise official cited that all the team owners are confident that the BCCI will have fruitful talks with the foreign boards and get the key foreign players on the board for the remainder of the IPL 2021 season in the UAE.
"What we were made aware of after the BCCI SGM is that the board will be speaking to the foreign boards and check on the availability of the foreign cricketers. We are confident that the BCCI will find the best possible solution and honestly, it is a matter of the BCCI officials speaking to the respective board officials, so we should wait to hear from the board on this.
Yes, if we do end up missing some of the foreign stars that is an area that would need some attention when it comes to picking replacements as the foreign players are also integral to the teams. Team balance can go for a toss, so keeping fingers crossed on that one," the franchise official said.
(ANI inputs)
