This year, the Indian Premier League (IPL) will be played in the UAE from 19 September. The final of the league will be held on 8 November. IPL chairman, Brijesh Patel has confirmed this information on Friday. He said, "We have had a discussion and we are looking at the September 19 to November 8 window for this edition of the league. We have informed the franchise about the same." On the other hand, the BCCI has informed the franchisees about this plan.
The BCCI official told the news agency that this time the league will end in 51 days. This will benefit franchisees, broadcasters and other stakeholders. There were speculations that this time the IPL will start from 26 September. But the BCCI has started preparations to have it done a week before, keeping in mind the Australia tour to be held later this year.
Due to the Coronavirus outbreak, all teams will arrive in the UAE a month in advance so that the players can adapt themselves according to the weather and atmosphere there. According to the information, all the franchises are preparing to reach there on 20 August.
India has to play a 4-Test series against Australia in November-December. According to Australian government regulations, the Indian team will have to stay there in Quarantine for 14 days. In such a situation, if the IPL held longer, then the schedule of the Australia tour will also have to be changed.
The IPL Governing Council will meet next week. There are three big agenda to be discussed in this meeting. This includes shifting leagues to the UAE, creating Corona Guidelines for franchisees, and broadcaster's demand. A senior BCCI official said, "There is a possibility that the IPL will start on September 19 (Saturday) and the final will be played on November 8 (Sunday)." In this way, it will run for 51 days. There was speculation that the IPL would start from 26 September but the BCCI wants to start it a week earlier so that the Indian team's Australian tour is not affected.
