BCCI is not even thinking about the IPL now, reveals source

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been going through a tough time. The outbreak of the Coronavirus has affected the sport in the country in a lot of ways. Firstly, it was the India-South Africa ODI series which was cancelled followed by a delay in the start of the IPL 2020. Due to restrictions by the Indian government on foreign visitors, the tournament had to be suspended until April 15.

Then, there has been a lot of talk regarding the start of the IPL 13 edition. BCCI President Sourav Ganguly had talked about shortening the tournament but didn’t give any clear information about what the plan was. There were also rumours of a possible rescheduling of the tournament in the month of August and September. But with the tight International schedule that follows, that option seems a bit unlikely.

It will be insensitive to even think about the league, says source

According to the recent reports, it seems that the IPL 2020 could be cancelled altogether as the BCCI is left with no other option. Reports suggest that no one at the office of BCCI or the IPL governing council is currently thinking about the tournament. There was an update last week that a conference call between the concerned officials and the franchises will be conducted on Tuesday.

“The stakeholders will be informally apprised after the conference call with the franchisees tomorrow (Tuesday) even if a formal announcement is not made soon,” said the source. “They (the BCCI) officials are not even thinking about the IPL now. It will be insensitive to even think about the league in this situation when the Coronavirus infection and death toll is rising by the minute. The situation will become more clear after the board members discuss among themselves during the day and inform us.”

The IPL 2020 was originally supposed to start on March 29 with the final being hosted on May 24. In the wake of the COVID-19, many sporting events have been cancelled until the month of May. The IPL 2020 could also fall a victim to the virus. “A scenario without the IPL will be the only item on agenda now. No one is going to talk about the possibility of the league now. The entire world is coming to a standstill”, the source revealed.