IPL 2020: Tournament could be further delayed due to COVID-19 outbreak, decision to be made after March

The 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League was scheduled to begin on March 29 which was postponed initially to April 15. However, this delay could reportedly be extended further in light of the deadly coronavirus outbreak.

Although there remains a chance of the tournament being cancelled altogether should the crisis worsen, the possibility of a curtailed season remains on the cards.

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly confirmed last week that they are considering the idea of a 'truncated' IPL 2020 season to adapt to the current state. A decision is reportedly set to be made only by the end of the month after due consideration of the situation. There is also a possibility of a truncated season being held at the end of the year.

According to news agency ANI, the owners of the franchises were due to have a video conference call with BCCI on March 24 to follow up a conference held last week, where there was no definitive outcome reached. Now, they are likely to have to wait until the end of the month if not longer to find out the fate of the 13th edition of IPL.

The Sports Ministry have also confirmed that a decision on the future of this IPL would be made only after April 15. Kiren Rijiju reiterated that the authorities will have a major say on the decision along with the BCCI due to there being a potential risk to the well-being of citizens.

He said,

"After April 15 the government will come up with new advisory and guidelines according to the situation. BCCI is a body that looks after cricket which is not an Olympic sport. But here it is not the question of the sporting event alone but a question of the safety of the citizens. In an event there will be thousands of spectators. So it is not just for the sports bodies or sportspersons it is for every citizen of the country."