Remainder of IPL 2021 to take place in UAE, BCCI Vice President confirms

BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla has confirmed that the remaining games of IPL 2021 will take place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The decision was taken following the virtual Special General Meeting (SGM) that took place on Saturday.

How to reschedule IPL 2021 has been the BCCI’s primary focus ever since the tournament came to an abrupt halt earlier this month. While England and Sri Lanka were previously touted as destinations, IPL 2021 will return to UAE - a region that hosted IPL 2020 with great success.

Rajeev Shukla confirmed the decision while speaking to ANI, with the news agency tweeting the announcement.

IPL has been moved to UAE for this season: Vice-President BCCI Rajeev Shukla to ANI pic.twitter.com/wqEukw6KGP

— ANI (@ANI) May 29, 2021

While the venue for IPL 2021 has been confirmed, the board is likely to take some more time before finalizing a window for the tournament. A source aware of the developments from the SGM confirmed that the BCCI is looking for a 25-day window to host the remaining games of IPL 2021. That window is likely to come in September-October, weeks before the T20 World Cup.

“There have been talks with the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) and they are happy to host the remaining IPL in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi like last time. The BCCI will now speak to the foreign boards to decide on the availability of the foreign players. While the Australian players may be available, there are some questions over the availability of the England and New Zealand players, we will see how that works out. We are looking at a 25-day window and that is on,” the source claimed.

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IPL 2021 venue confirmed, but T20 World Cup call yet to be taken

UPDATE: The Indian Premier League Governing Council (IPL GC) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in an emergency meeting has unanimously decided to postpone IPL 2021 season with immediate effect.Details - https://t.co/OgYXPj9FQy pic.twitter.com/lYmjBId8gL

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 4, 2021

While there was positive news on the IPL 2021 front, the BCCI has decided to delay any decision regarding the hosting of the T20 World Cup.

“There is still close to four and a half months and we are confident things will change in that space of time with respect to COVID-19. The BCCI will request the ICC for time till the end of June or the start of July to take a call on that matter,” the source concluded.

Irrespective of the venue of the T20 World Cup, the upcoming few months will see a lot of cricketing action, with several bilateral series and franchise leagues set to kick off in the buildup to the ICC event.