The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is still thinking over the venue of the upcoming IPL 2022 edition of the tournament, which will feature 10 teams including the two new franchises, the Lucknow Super Giants and the Ahmedabad based team.
With the third wave of COVID-19 fueled by the Omicron variant getting to its peak in the country, the BCCI, while telling the stakeholders that the first option would be to host the IPL 2022 in India, are looking at a backup option as well.
Thus far UAE, which hosted the IPL 2020 and second part of IPL 2021, and South Africa, which hosted the 2009 edition are in consideration with BCCI weighing the pros and cons.
But now, Cricket South Africa (CSA) has given a proposal, putting themselves as a cheaper option to hosting the tournament, once again in UAE.
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Cricbuzz reported that discussions have been taking place between the BCCI and CSA with particular emphasis on venues for which there would be no or bare minimum air travel, cutting down on the expenses for the franchises.
CSA also mentioned that hotel tariffs in South Africa would be significantly cheaper than in the UAE, where the teams were charged exorbitantly because of the heavy tourist influx due to the Dubai Expo.
The blueprint presented by the CSA has one huge key point, which sees the entire IPL 2022 is hosted at four venues with Johannesburg being the central hub.
Specifically, the South Africa board has proposed that the most matches can be played at Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, Centurion Park in Pretoria, Willowmoore Park in Benoni, and Senwes Cricket Stadium in Potchefstroom, all floodlit international grounds and in driving distance from one another. The teams would be based out of Johannesburg.
Given the fact that there would be 10 teams and 74 games this season, CSA also proposed that a part of the league can be played at Newlands Stadium in Cape Town and nearby Paarl ground. The teams, in that case, will be based in Cape Town, which means there would be one or two flight travels, to or from Johannesburg/Cape Town.
The second edition of the IPL, in 2009, was hosted in South Africa, and on that occasion, the CSA had deployed eight grounds across the country.
Officials of both boards confirmed to Cricbuzz that these points were discussed with a major issue being the COVID numbers in South Africa have significantly reduced despite the Omicron variant being first detected in Gauteng province.
If the IPL 2022 is held in India, the BCCI has proposed holding the entire tournament in Mumbai which had three international grounds in the Wankhede Stadium, the Brabourne Stadium, and DY Patil Stadium at its disposal with Pune’s MCA stadium also being an option.
The BCCI has informed the franchises during Saturday's meeting with owners that it would finalize the venue by February 20. While most owners wanted the IPL held in India, specifically Mumbai, some BCCI members are in favor of taking the IPL to South Africa.
(Cricbuzz inputs)
