BCCI suspends IPL till April 15 in the wake of Coronavirus

By Newsmeter Network  Published on  13 March 2020 10:50 AM GMT
BCCI suspends IPL till April 15 in the wake of Coronavirus

Hyderabad: The Board of Control for Cricket in India ( BCCI ) on Friday declared that the season 13 of the Indian Premier league (IPL) is suspended till April 15, as a precautionary measure against the ongoing Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) scare.

The BCCI said that it is concerned about all its stakeholders and public health in general, and is taking all necessary steps to ensure that all the people related to IPL including the fans, have a safe cricketing experience.

The BCCI has also decided to closely work with the Government of India along with the Ministry of youth affairs and sports, Ministry of health and family welfare and all other relevant Central and state government departments in this regard.

Earlier, the IPL was scheduled to kick-off on March 29 at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai with the defending champions Mumbai Indians taking on Chennai Super Kings. The final was scheduled to be in Mumbai on May 24.

Earlier, the Delhi Government also banned all sporting events including IPL in the wake of Coronavirus. The Maharashtra Government has banned the ticket sales outside the stadiums in order to avoid crowd gatherings as a preventive measure. A total of 14 positive cases were registered in Maharashtra as Uddhav Thackrey took the decision.

With the nation's first Coronavirus death in Karnataka, the government is most likely to cancel the ticket sales. Pubs and cinema halls are already shut down.

The remaining two ODIs of the India - South Africa series on 15th and 18th March have been decided to play behind closed doors in order to avoid gatherings.

The ongoing Australia - New Zealand ODI series is also being played behind closed doors due to Coronavirus. Even few foreign players participating in the PSL have been asked to leave early due to Coronavirus.

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