IPL 2020 likely to be postponed indefinitely, future looks bleak: Reports

The already-postponed India Premier League could be further delayed for an indefinite period of time after Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended the nationwide lockdown till May 3 to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus in the country.

“Since lockdown has been extended, we have to postpone the IPL for the time being, the decision will be intimated, we will discuss the matter later today,” ANI quoted a BCCI source as saying.

Advertisement

On Tuesday, the day which marked the end of the earlier-announced 21-day nationwide lockdown, PM Modi announced India will continue to remain the same. However, he revealed that the second phase of the lockdown will have some modifications, the guidelines which would be released on Wednesday.

“Till 20th April, all districts, localities, states will be closely monitored, as to how strictly they are implementing norms. States which will not let hotspots increase, they could be allowed to let some important activities resume, but with certain conditions,” PM Modi informed the nation in a televised address.

On Monday, BCCI treasurer Arun Dhamal had said that there was no clarity on the future of the 13th edition of the IPL and that the stakeholders would take a call after the government had announced when the lockdown would end.

“Right now, the picture is very hazy. We don’t even know when the lockdown will end and if we don’t know, how can we even have a meaningful discussion. Once we get a clarity from the government, we can then sit and take fresh stock of the situation. Any speculation about it’s future will be premature,” Dhumal told PTI during an exclusive interaction.

Meanwhile, the chief of BCCI Sourav Ganguly, in a recent media interaction, had also made it clear that the current situation didn’t permit a sporting event like IPL. He, meanwhile, believed that these unprecedented circumstances are going to prevail till at least mid-May.

“We keep monitoring developments. At the present moment, we can’t say anything. And what is there to say anyway? Airports are shut, people are stuck at home, offices are locked down, nobody can go anywhere. And it seems this is how it’s going to be till the middle of May,” IANS quoted Ganguly.

Keeping in mind the deadly outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic of the country, the IPL 2020 was earlier postponed from March 29 to April 15. But with India set to be under the lockdown till May 3, the cash-rich tournament’s fate hangs firmly in doubts.