Brijesh Patel, chairman of the Indian Premier League (IPL) Governing Council, said on Wednesday that they will be discuss the coronavirus threat in the IPL GC meeting on March 14 and reiterated that the tournament will not be affected by the pandemic. There have been a lot of reports going on about the shadow cast by the virus on the future of the tournament but Patel said that necessary precautions will be taken during the tournament.
“Why will COVID-19 attack only IPL? We are monitoring the situation. All cricket matches, be it Ranji Trophy final, or series between Afghanistan and Ireland, England and Sri Lanka and Australia-New Zealand are currently going ahead as per schedule. The Road Safety World Series is on. These matches have seen full houses at the stadium in Mumbai. Local trains are running, schools and colleges are not totally shut,” Patel told The Week.
“We are monitoring the situation on a daily basis. We will take all necessary precautions as prescribed by WHO and Ministry of Health. The IPL Governing Council is meeting on 14th March to take stock of the situation.”
The Maharashtra government, which discussed outbreak, asked on Wednesday if IPL matches can be postponed, cancelled or even held in empty stadiums.
“BCCI is ready to hold the IPL tournament without audience. It means there will be no sale of tickets. However, we are yet to receive any official request. We will consider it after receiving. If necessary, the IPL matches can be postponed,” chief minister Uddhav Thackeray said.
Thackeray as well as health minister Rajesh Tope seemed to be in favour of not holding the matches. “No final decision is taken on the issue,” Tope said.
With the number of positive cases in India hitting 60 on Wednesday, there is fear that the large crowds at IPL games will pose a serious contagion risk.
