IPL Chairman Brijesh Patel has informed that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has sent the acceptance letter to Emirates Cricket Board for hosting the IPL 2020 in UAE. The league will be played in September-November behind closed doors due to coronavirus outbreak.
Earlier, UAE had proposed to host the cash-rich league but the Indian board had not taken a final decision on IPL’s future. BCCI was waiting for the free window which they got after the ICC decided to postpone the T20 World Cup 2020.
Brijesh Patel opens up on IPL conformation from BCCI in UAE:
Originally, the IPL 2020 was scheduled to start on March 29, 2020, with the inaugural match between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings in India. However, BCCI had to postpone the tournament for an indefinite time owing to the rise in the number of coronavirus cases in the country. Nevertheless, the cases are still increasing therefore the board decided to host the league on foreign land. This will be the second time that the whole league would be hosted outside India, last was in 2009 when South Africa arranged the whole league.
The Khaleej Times quoted Brijesh Patel as saying, “Yes, we have sent the acceptance letter to the ECB and both the boards will be working together from now on to stage the tournament.”
No quarantine rule in UAE:
As per the current health protocol in Dubai, there is no need to be in quarantine if people are carrying a negative COVID-19 test report, but if they are not, they will have to undergo a test.
However, the players and staff members will be kept under a bio-secure bubble keeping in mind all the health guidelines.
Brijesh Patel also mentioned that eight franchises- Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi Capitals, Kings XI Punjab, Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad- will have their respective training sessions in the UAE and will need three to four weeks to get accustomed to their surroundings.