BENGALURU: The
IPL is “suspended” for now and not “cancelled”, according to governing council chairman
Brijesh Patel.
Speaking to TOI, Patel said, “We were exploring the option of shifting venues and rescheduling matches. But with two more players testing positive, it took the tally of affected teams to four. In such a scenario, it was not feasible to rejig the schedule. Also, some players were not very comfortable with the circumstances.”
The former India batsman said the cricket body would work out fresh dates soon.
“The Covid situation in the country is currently grim, so it is too early to say when the tournament will resume. Also, there are various other factors that need to be considered. The FTP (Future Tour Programme) needs to be taken into consideration. We’ll have to wait and see if we’ll get a window before or after the
T20 World Cup
.”
In the lead-up to the tournament, which got under way in Chennai on April 9, the governing council had recommended that the IPL be shifted to the UAE. Patel refused to be drawn into the controversy but conceded. “The second wave has been devastating. We didn’t expect it to be this bad. Yes, UAE was an option.”