UAE venues get into action for showpiece

Government clearance still remains a ticklish issue for Indian board

Aday after the Governing Council of Indian Premier League (IPL) finalised their dates of the 13th edition in the UAE, the three venues quietly got into the business of giving a facelift to their venues for nearly two-month long showpiece from September 19-November 10.

The management of the venues in the UAE — Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah went into a huddle with their preparations all along yesterday even as the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) is waiting to hear from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) about the formal clearance from the government so that they could table it before the UAE authorities.

Meeting deferred

The letter of intent, sent by the Indian board to ECB, stated their plans to host the tournament here while the IPL press release late on Sunday maintained the matches will be played “subject to necessary clearances from the Government of India.” Sources in the know of things say that it’s only the clearance from the Home Ministry, which is pending as the ones from the Ministry of External Affairs as well as Sports have come though.

Meanwhile, the BCCI has deferred a meeting with the franchises as well as broadcasters scheduled for Monday to a later date, while advising them to go ahead with their visa formalities.

Their directive on Sunday to all franchises that no team can leave for the UAE before August 20 has apparently not gone down well as some of them were planning to jet into the UAE for staging camps earlier. Both Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians could be looking to leave for Abu Dhabi around August 10 or 12, but they will have to keep it for later now.

According to sources, It’s only the clearance from the Home Ministry, which is pending.