Sourav Ganguly explains why crowds are allowed for India-England series but not for IPL 2021

Sourav Ganguly has disclosed the thought process behind conducting the first phase of IPL 2021 behind closed doors.

The BCCI president explained the difference between organizing a bilateral series and an eight-team tournament, pointing out the players could be at risk if crowds are allowed at the venues.

In an interview with India Today on Monday (March 8), Sourav Ganguly spoke at length about IPL 2021. The board recently released the tournament's schedule with six venues - Ahmedabad, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Chennai set to host the fixtures.

Interestingly, no team will play a single home game in IPL 2021. When asked why the BCCI barred spectators from the tournament's first phase, Sourav Ganguly replied:

"It's [IPL 2021] slightly different than a bilateral [series]. If you open up to crowds, there are teams playing in middle, there are teams practising outside as well. Lot of these stadiums have practice pitches outside, and teams practice there because they play every day. So to open it up to crowds, you expect them to get closer to the practicing teams. So that could be a bit of a risk."

Will the entire 2021 IPL be played behind closed doors? 🤔Sourav Ganguly has hinted that the option cannot be ruled outhttps://t.co/mcDWGbaKI8

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) March 8, 2021

Replying to a query on whether BCCI would allow crowds for the second phase of IPL 2021, Sourav Ganguly said:

"Don't know yet, depends on the situation."

The BCCI did it successfully in Dubai and hopefully we'll be able to get through in IPL 2021 as well: Sourav Ganguly

Sourav Ganguly and Jay Shah (Image Courtesy: IPLT20.com/BCCI)

Last year, the BCCI successfully organized IPL 2020 behind closed doors in the United Arab Emirates. After the tournament, the board successfully conducted the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and India vs. England Test series without any interruptions.

Multiple venues played host to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, and the IPL Governing Council plans to manage IPL 2021 games the same way.

"We've done it in clusters. So there will be three flights maximum for every team, hopefully we'll manage. Because, see, with the England tour, India have gone to Chennai, Ahmedabad and will go to Pune. And also the domestic teams. We're trying to do it that way only. Hopefully it'll be fine, the numbers are much less, it's a lot better but fingers crossed. It's a huge tournament. The BCCI did it successfully in Dubai and hopefully we'll be able to get through this time as well," Sourav Ganguly concluded.

IPL 2021 will begin on April 9 in Chennai with a match between the Mumbai Indians and the Royal Challengers Bangalore. The final will take place on May 30 in Ahmedabad.