MUMBAI
The wise men of the International Cricket Council (ICC) will meet on June 10 via teleconference to decide the fate of the T20 World Cup. However the groundwork for the Indian Premier League (IPL) has already been laid on foreign soil, as many pundits of the game have ruled out the game being played on its home turf.
With West Indies already having reached England for their three-Test match series starting from July and the India tour of Australia already on the cards starting October, the only window of opportunity available for the IPL is in July.
The Emirates Cricket Board has volunteered to be the host for this edition of the IPL (Gulf News), while going to South Africa has been ruled out.
“Going to South Africa would not be conducive as travelling within South Africa would be the main hurdle, flying from one venue to the other. Whereas, if it is held in Dubai, it would mean travel by road, which is an advantage,” said former Indian opener Surinder Khanna, talking to The Free Press Journal on the eve of the meeting.
“But again, it will all depend on the guidelines of the Indian government and I am sure things will fall into place and the IPL will be held this year,” stated Khanna.
As for the duration of the IPL, the opener said, “Since the venues are minus spectators, the matches can be held in any stadium, and the UAE does have a few, and they also have the best facilities to observe all the guidelines for Covid-19 and this will be an advantage.”
"In the past, the Emirates Cricket Board has successfully hosted IPL matches in the UAE. We have a proven record of being hosts as a neutral venue for various bilateral and multi-nation cricket activities in the past," general secretary Mubashshir Usmani told the Gulf News.
The T20 World Cup was to be played from October 18-November 15 in Australia this year, but the coronavirus pandemic has left everyone guessing.
Sources within the ICC have said that in all, five points would be discussed at the meeting on Wednesday: the decision on the T20 World Cup, the election of the ICC chairman, the scheduling of the Future Tours Programme, tax issues with the BCCI and the ICC CEO's submission of reports on confidential issues.
