New Delhi. The 14th season of IPL had to be postponed due to Corona. Now the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is planning to hold it in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in September-October. However, there are some things that will not be easy for BCCI to overcome. A special general meeting of the board is to be held on Saturday in which an important decision is to be taken if the remaining matches of the tournament are held.
Men’s T20 World Cup:
This tournament of 16 teams is proposed in India from mid-October to 14 November. However, Corona does not have a status in India and it is also likely to be held in the UAE hosting the BCCI. This will benefit the BCCI that it will get players in one place and shift from one bio bubble (special environment created for players) to another bio bubble.
Confrontation with CPL:
Organizers of the Caribbean Premier League announced on 20 May that the upcoming season would run from 28 August to 19. In the West Indies, Kieron Pollard (Mumbai Indians), Andre Russell, Sunil Naren (Kolkata Knight Riders), Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran (Punjab Kings), Dwayne Bravo (Chennai Super Kings), Shimron Hetmyer (Delhi Capitals) play in IPL.
Apart from this, the CPL also has a dilemma regarding big foreign players as it includes Faf Duplessis, Imran Tahir (Super Kings) and Chris Maurice (Barbados). However, problems will also increase for the CPL as to how they finish the tournament before the IPL and send players directly to the UAE by chartered flights so that the players can play all the matches.
In addition to completing the league, CPL will need Cricket West Indies to potentially change the itinerary for the home series against Pakistan. Pakistan’s tour of West Indies will begin on July 28 with the team having five T20 and two Test matches. Four days later, the West Indies team will play a home series against Australia.
Availability of England players difficult
England captain Eoin Morgan (Kolkata Knight Riders), Jose Butler, Ben Stokes, Joffra Archer (Rajasthan Royals), Johnny Bairstow, Jason Roy (Sunrisers Hyderabad), Sam Curran, Moeen Ali (Chennai Super Kings), Chris Woakes and Tom Curran (Delhi Capitals) are the top players of IPL teams. Many of these players will not be able to play for the remaining season of IPL as England Cricket Board Director Ashley Giles has stated in a strong word that there will be no compromise with cricket for the country.
England have to play in Bangladesh after the Test series with India and then two ODIs against Pakistan. Both series are planned to be held in late September and mid-October. New Zealand, on the other hand, is also planning to play a limited-format series against Pakistan in September-October while Afghanistan will host Pakistan in the UAE in September for a limited-format series.
Moving from bubble to bubble:
In 2020, the players came directly into the IPL bubble from the CPL and England-Australia series. All these players came from chartered flights. It will also be a challenge for the BCCI to assemble the team in the UAE and quarantine it under the rules of the government there. Players also have a lot of mental difficulties in moving from one bio bubble to another. Many players can withdraw for this reason as well.
Leave a Reply