BCCI Meets IPL Franchisees Over Coronavirus Pandemic, To Take Wait-And-Watch Approach

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) met with the Indian Premier League franchisees in Mumbai on Saturday and decided to take a wait-and-watch approach after the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League was postponed to April 15 in the wake of the coronavirus. In a release by the BCCI, Secretary Jay Shah said, "The BCCI along with all the IPL franchises have reiterated BCCI’s stand of putting safety and well-being of fans, athletes and employees as a priority. The board will continue to monitor and work closely with Government of India, state governments and other state regulatory bodies to decide on the future course of action in the best interest of public health. The BCCI and all its stakeholders are committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for everyone involved in our great sport and the nation."

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) owner and actor Shah Rukh Khan took to his Twitter handle to express his views on the 13th edition of the IPL amid the coronavirus outbreak. The actor hopes the spread of coronavirus subsides and IPL can be conducted with all the necessary health precautions in place. A day after the start of the IPL was suspended from March 29 to April 15 by the BCCI, the franchise owners had a meeting before the event's Governing Council meet.

He tweeted, ''Wonderful to meet all the Franchise owners ‘off the field’ so to say. The meeting by @Bcci and @ipl was to reiterate what all of us feel...safety first of the spectators, players management & cities we play in. All directives of the health agencies & govt to be followed..'' In another tweet, he shared, ''Hope the spread of the virus subsides & the show can go on. BCCI & team owners in consultation with the govt will keep a close watch & decide the way fwd in the health interest of ever1. Lovely 2 meet every1 & then sanitise ourselves repeatedly.. @SGanguly99 @JayShah #BPatel.''

The IPL has been postponed to April 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Image credit: Getty Images)

Manish Sisodia, the deputy chief minister of Delhi, has announced that no IPL games will take place in Delhi in the wake of the Coronavirus outbreak and that all sporting events in the city will be cancelled. The coronavirus pandemic has cast a big cloud over the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League. With the disease now stopping or affecting sporting events all over the globe, the fate of the IPL is uncertain. There will be a meeting of the IPL Governing Council in Mumbai on Saturday and there will be a decision taken on what could be the logistics after April 15.

In a circular issued by the Delhi government, it stated that, "All sports gatherings (including IPL), conferences, seminars beyond 200 people are prohibited in NCT of Delhi for the purpose of prevention and control of the outbreak of epidemic disease namely COVID-19." Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju and Sports secretary Radhey Shyam Julaniya have issued strict advisories to follow the Health Ministry's advisory regarding the coronavirus pandemic. The government issued a fresh advisory with a ban on all existing foreign visas, except a few categories like diplomatic and employment, till April 15 in the wake of new positive cases.

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In the wake of the developments, Rijiju said, "We have requested all the sporting federations to follow the guidelines of the health ministry. One must avoid mass gatherings in a tournament like the IPL. All over the world, many tournaments are being played behind closed doors or cancelled in order to prevent the spread of the pandemic," Rijiju said.

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