International sport everywhere is in a shambles because of COVID19. Last week the IOC had postponed the Tokyo Olympics by a year, to 2021. This week, the Wimbledon tennis tournament, the oldest and arguably biggest of the four Grand Slams, has been pushed back by a year. Like the Olympics, the only time Wimbledon Championships were scrapped was during World War I (1915-1918) and World War II (1940-45).
It must have been excruciating for the organisers to defer the tournament, but this also shows how dire the situation is. As I write this piece, unconfirmed reports are also trickling in that the England Cricket Board (ECB) is poised to scrap the domestic season. This means that The 100, England’s ambitious foray into the shortest format, and a counter to the dominance of the IPL, would also be scuttled for this year. I don’t mean to sound like a stuck record, but bad news is piling up relentlessly, without respite.
In fact, even partial recovery from the current dystopian scenario may be some months away, which makes the state of sport and sports events even more depressing. As of now, two major sports events that engage Indian fans that haven’t been shifted from their earlier itineraries are the US Open tennis championships (played end-August, early September), and perhaps even more, the ICC T20 World Championship to be played in Australia in October.
Decision on the US Open, one reckons, hinges on how America copes with the pandemic in the next few weeks. President Donald Trump has oscillated between high optimism and deep pessimism, which has left the country – and by extension the US Open – betwixt and between. So far, the ICC T20 World Championship has been under the radar.
Attention in the cricket world had been greater on the Indian Premier League, suspended till April 15, and the home season in England, the start of which had been postponed till May 28, and as mentioned earlier, may not happen at all. With almost seven months for the T20 World Championship to start, this event stands the best chance of being played this year itself. Consensus opinion seems to be – though I must admit to not being an expert in such matters – that the threat of COVID-19 should start tapering off in 3-4 months.
This gives events scheduled in the last quarter of 2020 some chance to be played according to the original itinerary. Of course, subject to how well the contagion is managed in the next few weeks, especially in the US, Europe and the Indian sub-continent, where it struck belatedly. I’d left discussing the IPL till now because it remains an excruciating issue to resolve, not just for the BCCI, but the entire cricket world.
With so much money riding on this tournament for all stakeholders – players, broadcasters, franchise owners, sponsors, etc – the loss of a season would have huge ramifications. But I’ve also been intrigued by the statement of Manoj Badale, co-owner of Rajasthan Royals, who during an interview recently, said that playing the IPL while COVID-19 was raging was impossible, a truncated season sometime this year may yet be possible. I don’t think this is just wishful thinking on Badale’s part.
All franchise owners have been discussing among themselves, and with the BCCI, on how best to ensure that the IPL is somehow accommodated this year. In that sense, I think Badale’s point of view reflects those of all franchisees.
But is there a window for the IPL to be played in 2020? In mid-March, the BCCI suspended the IPL till April 15. Given how the pandemic has unravelled over the past fortnight, it is virtually impossible that the league can commence for 3 months. Franchises have to get their houses in order, assemble players, start practice and put monetisation opportunities into play as the bare minimum.
But three months from now would bring the IPL bang in the middle of the monsoons in India, which makes it a no go. But it’s not an entirely hopeless situation according to an official who wishes to remain unnamed. One option according to him is for a truncated IPL season to be played from mid-September to mid-October as a prelude to the World T20 Championships though this may not sit well with all countries because so many are not engaged in the IPL. How do these players ‘tune up’ for the World T20? The other option – a diabolical one – is for the T20 World Championship to be scrapped this year, and the IPL be played in its place.
But what of Australia, host for this year’s T20 World Cup, why would they surrender a major tournament? If Australia are assured of the Test series which was to follow the T20 World Cup this year, and given the 2021 T20 World Championship which was to be played in India, it could be a win-win situation for both countries, said the official. Convoluted like a jalebi, you might say, but interesting nonetheless! The writer is a senior journalist who has been writing on the sport for over 40 years.
