Amid growing concerns of coronavirus disease which has wreaked havoc the international calendar of several sporting events all across the world, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has now ruled out any IPL 2020 matches to be held in Delhi.
Manish Sisodia told the reporters at the press conference on Friday (13th March) that the preventive measures are being taken not to halt any sporting activity, but the ultimate aim is to ensure that large gatherings are avoided to stay away from coronavirus outbreak.
Earlier, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) chief Sourav Ganguly ruled out any threat to the Indian Premier League (IPL 2020) while confirming that futuristic events will not be cancelled as it will go ahead as planned. However, in the latest development, it has now been confirmed that the thirteenth edition of the Indian Premier League has been postponed till 15th April.
“Avoid large gatherings. A lot of people might be thinking about whether it’s right to take such extreme measures. In countries where preventive measures are being taken, only there it (coronavirus outbreak) could be regulated otherwise, it keeps spreading. We have told all DMs and SDMs to strictly follow all the coronavirus cases coming up.
We have banned all sports-related gatherings. If BCCI comes up with some new format then it’s up to them. But we are banning every such sports activity where there is a possibility of thousands of people gathering. Our intent is to avoid gathering and not stop people from practising,” Sisodia told the media reporters
No foreign players will be available for the IPL 2020 till 15th April
Meanwhile, no foreign players will be available for this year’s IPL till 15th April due to visa restrictions imposed by the government in an attempt to contain the novel coronavirus threat, a top BCCI source told PTI on Thursday.
“Yes, foreign players will not be available. We will discuss this and other issues at our governing council meeting scheduled for March 14,” a source in IPL governing council had told news agency ANI.
The Sports Ministry has asked all National Sports Federations (NSFs), including the BCCI to follow the Health Ministry’s guidelines. According to the guidelines issued, it has been asked to ignore or avoid large public gatherings.