After passing all the hurdles on the way, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has got successful in hosting the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 which was postponed two times because of the coronavirus.
Earlier, IPL 2020 was scheduled to begin from 29th March but the outbreak of the pandemic delayed the league. It was rescheduled in mid-August. But the spike in COVID-19 cases around the world slashed all the cricketing scheduled. As a result, the most popular T20 league was postponed indefinitely.
But finally, after an extended delay, BCCI got the window to host IPL after ICC postponed T20 World Cup 2020 to next year. However, the board could not host the league at home because of increasing coronavirus. At last, the decision was made to take the entire league in the UAE.
After the eight franchise safely landed UAE, the fans became more assured of hosting the league. But the bad news was still on its way. 13 personnel, including two players, in CSK camp, tested positive of the coronavirus after arriving in the UAE. This lead to the delay in the announcement of the schedule of the much-awaited league. Many were of the view that the cash-rich league might be called off.
But BCCI kept calm and gave happy news to everyone after announcing fixtures of IPL 2020.
IPL chairman Brijesh Patel, while talking to ANI, also opined that it was ‘very satisfying to see IPL happening’. He said that during the long tournament, they now could not afford to be complacent because there might come difficulties in their way.
“It is very satisfying to see IPL happening after all the hurdles on the way. Finally, we are able to make it happen but this is only the beginning as it is a long tournament so we can not afford to be complacent but definitely, it is very satisfying,” Patel told ANI.
IPL 2020 Will Be Bigger Than Past Edition: Chairman Brijesh Patel
Brijesh Patel believes that the IPL 2020 will have more viewership than ever. Moreover, it will be a huge success than past editions although the crowd would not be present in the ground.
“I think cricket fans were bit disappointed when it was (IPL) postponed and nothing was certain about the fate for the tournament. But now they (fans) are looking forward to seeing some live cricket so I feel this year’s viewership will be highest ever and this year’s IPL should be bigger than last year as well,” he added.
The IPL 2020 will begin with the match between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings on 19 September.