IPL 2019 might be shifted to the United Arab Emirates

The 2019 Indian General Elections are scheduled to be held in the month of April and May and it’s exactly the time when the Indian Premier League (IPL) is staged. Hence, the tournament might be shifted to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as per reports in The Tribune. The tournament has previously been shifted a couple of times due to the same reason.

In 2009, the league was staged in South Africa, while in 2014, the first part of the event was hosted in the UAE. Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi are the likely venues if the IPL is played in the UAE. The next edition of the IPL will be played from March 29 to May 19. An official of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) talked about the possible shifting of the games.

Second IPL in the UAE?

“Well, we will only take a call when the situation arises, but we are ready for any such eventuality. The United Arab Emirates looks to be the most likely country where it would be shifted if need be,” the official was quoted as saying on TOI. The time zones of India and the UAE are also pretty similar and most importantly, suited to the needs of the Indian audience.

The official also highlighted the benefits of selecting UAE as the venue ahead of South Africa. “UAE’s time zone suits the Indian audience unlike South Africa,” the official added. The eleventh edition of the event is currently underway and has already been a witness to a shift in venue.

The home games of the Royal Challengers Bangalore due to elections in the state and that of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) had been shifted from the Chepauk to the MCA Stadium in Pune because of other political issues.

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