IPL Governing Council Considering Early Start To 8 PM Games
Dec 23, 2018 at 12:32 PM
The forthcoming eleventh edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) could see the night games of the tournament getting started one hour earlier than the tradition 8 pm kickoff if te broadcaster Star Sports accept the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) proposal.
In the past ten seasons of the tournament, the night games had gone well past midnight due to several reasons, causing plenty of problems for the spectators. And in an attempt to sort out the issue, IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla had proposed the idea in an IPL general council meeting. All the franchises have welcomed the proposal, but the final decision lies in the broadcaster’s hand.
Shukla, while speaking to The Indian Express, confirmed the developments before making it clear it all depends on the broadcaster.
“It was just a thought (starting game at 7 pm), and everyone welcomed it, but first we need to speak to the broadcaster and take their nod. We will work on modalities then. There have been many centers where travelling is a major concern. All the issues were discussed, and we all thought to start the game but early,” Shukla told the news outlet.
Meanwhile, if the 8 pm games start early, then it is likely the afternoon games will begin at 3 pm.
The IPL governing council is scheduled to meet in New Delhi on December 5. Shukla also stated that all franchises had welcomed the idea of mid-term transfers.
“Every IPL owner agreed to have this in the forthcoming season. It will give a chance to those players who are good but are not getting opportunities to be part of playing XI of any IPL side. We are having an IPL governing council meeting soon to finalize all these points,” Shukla added.
The mid-term transfers is a common practice in some major football leagues across the globe. However, it is yet to get implemented in cricket leagues. Meanwhile, the much-talked-about topic of player retention is also likely to be talked about at the upcoming meeting.
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