T20 WORLD CUP OFF
Window clear for BCCI to host moneybags IPL
Dubai, July 20: To no surprise, the men’s Twenty20 World Cup in October in Australia has been delayed for 12 months because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
India might also be able to find a slot for its lucrative Indian Premier League, which was postponed indefinitely in April.
Cricket Australia cast doubt in May on the chances of it going ahead on schedule from October 18 to November 15. It will be played in the same months in 2021, the International Cricket Council said after a virtual meet on Monday.
It was going to be risky to gather 15 other nations with different levels of the Coronavirus in Australia, where the state of Victoria was currently under lockdown after a new surge in cases. Victoria is to stage the final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The T20 World Cup scheduled for November 2021 will take place in 2022, while the Cricket World Cup scheduled for February and March 2023 in India will go ahead in October and November that year.
“Our members now have the clarity they need around event windows to enable them to reschedule lost bilateral and domestic cricket,’’ ICC chief executive Manu Sawhney said after the meeting.
“Moving the men’s Cricket World Cup to a later window is a critical element of this and gives us a better chance of maintaining the integrity of the qualification process. This additional time will be used to reschedule games that might be lost because of the pandemic, ensuring qualification can be decided on the field of play,” Sawhney added.
Sawhney said the ICC worked closely with key stakeholders, including several governments and medical experts to reschedule three World Cups and “reach a collective decision for the good of the game and our fans.”