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Speculation is rife about the schedule of this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL). The ICC’s decision to postpone this year’s T20 World Cup has cleared the path for the BCCI to host the competition this year. The T20 World Cup was scheduled to take place in October-November in Australia.
The window will now be used by the BCCI to host the IPL. Recently, several reports suggested that the tournament is likely to be held between September 26 and November 8. A BCCI official has stated that IPL 2020 will start earlier than that. The official stated that the tournament would begin on September 19 in the United Arab Emirates with the final slated on November 8.
The final schedule is likely to be out next week after the IPL Governing Council meet to chalk out the final details and approve the schedule. The BCCI has also informally intimated the franchises about the plan.
“IPL in all likelihood will start on September 19 (Saturday), and the final will be held on November 8 (Sunday). It is a 51-day window which will suit the franchises as well as the broadcasters and other stakeholders,” a senior BCCI official.
The report further mentioned that the BCCI decided to advance the start of the IPL by a week in order to ensure that the Indian team’s tour of Australia is not jeopardized. India is scheduled to tour Australia later on this year for a blockbuster 4-match Test series, starting in December.
“The Indian team will have a mandatory quarantine of 14 days as per Australian government rules. A delay would have sent the plans haywire.
“The best part is that 51 days is not at all a curtailed period, and there will be much fewer doubleheaders. We could stick to the original 5 doubleheaders in 7 week window,” the official stated.
With the players short on match practice due to the pandemic, the franchises will be leaving base by August 20, which gives them exactly 4 weeks’ time to prepare.
