The fate of the T20 World Cup 2020 to be held in Australia later this year is uncertain. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has not been able to make a decision on the tournament yet. Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, it would not be feasible to host the World Cup. As a result, there are chances that the authorities might decide to suspend the World Cup till next year. This also means that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) can consider hosting the IPL in the September-October window. IPL 2020 was scheduled to start on March 29, 2020. However owing to the rapid increase in the COVID-19 cases in the country, the board had suspended the league for an indefinite time.
Cricket Australia holds the hosting rights for the T20 World Cup. The Australian board is undergoing a financial crisis and is not very keen on organizing the tournament this year. Recently, the chairman of Cricket Australia, Carl Eddings said that it would be ‘unrealistic’ to host the tournament this year from October 18 to November 15.
Eddings told the reporters on Tuesday, “While it hasn’t been formally called off this year, or postponed, trying to get 16 countries into Australia in the current world, where most countries are still going through COVID spiking, I think it’s unrealistic, or it’s going to be very, very difficult,”
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IPL to take place instead of T20 World Cup?
BCCI is looking forward to ICC’s verdict on T20 World Cup to formally announce the schedule of the IPL 2020. However, Carl Eddings’s statement has given new hope to the Indian board. As a result, BCCI has informally stared the preparations for the commencement of the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League.
The board is trying to make a schedule to host the cash-rich league this year. If the tournament doesn’t take place, the BCCI and its stakeholders are expected to lose about Rs. 4000 crores. Also, the cricketers would not be getting money from the franchises as they work on one single rule; no match, no money.
