While the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 is scheduled to start from March 29, the postponement of the domestic league looms large due to coronavirus. As per the sources, the foreign players are not available for the Indian Premier League till April 15 due to visa restrictions by the Government of India.
Sports Secretary Radhey Shyam Julaniya stated that "All the national federations, including BCCI, are asked to follow Health Ministry's advisory and avoid large gatherings, keeping in mind the Coronavirus Outbreak. We have sent the advisory to everyone."
BCCI's Plan-B
Hit by the revised travel advisories issued by the Government of India on Wednesday evening, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) might start working on plan B i.e. deferment of IPL 2020 from March 29 to mid-April, for now. Meanwhile, the BCCI might opt for changing the format by reducing home and away games by dividing the teams into two groups.
Maharashtra bans sale of IPL tickets in Mumbai
The Maharashtra state cabinet has made a call to ban the sale of tickets for the IPL matches at the Wankhede stadium in order to prevent the huge gathering.
Plea in HC against Indian Premier League
In the wake of coronavirus spreading, a plea has been filed in Madras High Court seeking direction to the Government of India not to allow the BCCI to conduct IPL 2020 matches from Match 29 to May 24. The plea has been filed by an advocate G Alex Benziger, who is likely to come up before the two-judge bench comprising Justices M M Sundresh and Krishnan Ramaswamy on March 12.
Also Read | WHO declares coronavirus a pandemic
Coronavirus declared pandemic
Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the novel coronavirus as a pandemic. 4,634 people have died due to coronavirus so far, while 126,380 cases have been confirmed. In India, over 60 confirmed cases have been reported.
-PTC News
