IPL 2020: The Indian Premier League is one of the most loved tournaments around the world. Cricket fans are always excited and thrilled to watch their favorite cricketers, from various teams of the world coming out together to play against each other. Also, IPL is the biggest revenue-earning platform for BCCI.
As the new season of the cash-rich league is just around the corner, it has been surrounded by doubts and concerns due to the outbreak of coronavirus.
The World Health Organization recently declared the outbreak of Coronavirus all around the world as ‘Pandemic’with the number of affected people crossing 124,000 globally. In India, the total number of coronavirus infected people has risen to 73. Therefore, the government has made it clear to the BCCI that any sporting event that has to be held amid the ongoing Coronavirus period will be held behind closed doors.
As per the latest updates, no foreign player will be available for IPL 2020 till April 15 because of visa restrictions, as revealed by a top source of BCCI.
Meanwhile, the franchises are okay with the tournament being held in closed doors and empty stands but the franchises have wished for their foreign players to be made available from the start of the tournament. In an interview with IANS, an official of the franchise revealed:
“See, the gate money is no issue as these things are insured. As for the fans, it is disappointing, but we don’t really have much of an option as we have to abide by the diktat of the central government and even WHO has declared the outbreak a “pandemic”.
He added:
“This makes it clear that if we have to have an IPL this year, it has to be behind closed doors. So now, would we rather want an IPL where fans can watch the games on television or we don’t want an IPL in 2020? So, we are okay with that, but the BCCI must sit down and speak to the central government to make an exception and allow the foreign players to come in before April 15 as the IPL loses its sheen otherwise,”
The official also talked about the chances of IPL getting postponed, it was a clear no-no from his side. He said:
“The international commitments that the players have cannot be toyed with and the host broadcasters have already made it clear that they are not too keen on double headers. So, keeping the interest of all parties in place, the best option is to have an IPL behind closed doors. The franchises will have to bear the loss that comes with merchandise sales, but that is a nominal amount as compared to the losses that will be incurred if the IPL doesn’t happen in 2020,”
An official from the other franchise said how BCCI needs to sit down and discuss how they can bring the overseas players from the start. He said:
“See, the Proteas are already in the country, so as per the directive, they can easily stay back. Also, if you see, the Englishmen are already in Sri Lanka and the Kiwis are playing the Aussies in Australia, so they are anyway on the road. We just need the BCCI to sit down with the governmental departments and get us the clearance so that we can have the IPL with foreign players. The whole tournament will lose its charm if the foreign players are not there. It is the biggest cricket carnival in the world for a reason,”
