Sri Lanka Looking To Host IPL 2022?
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has expressed its interest to host the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2022, according to a statement. The country of India is now under the control of COVID-19, with the number of reported cases growing at an alarming pace. Because of this, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has prepared a contingency plan, with South Africa and Sri Lanka serving as backup hosts in the event of an Indian defeat.
In contrast, the fact that the full IPL 2020 and a part of 2021 IPL was held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Gulf country is a favourite to re-host the allocated set of matches too. However, according to reliable sources, the Indian board does not intend to be fully reliant on the UAE for the hosting of the lucrative championship. They want to keep an option of a venue that will be suitable for every IPL match.
SLC, on the other hand, has shown a great deal of interest and has even mentioned the possibility of commencing negotiations with the Sourav Ganguly-led BCCI
SLC will contact the BCCI about the IPL 2022; as they try to host the upcoming edition of the tournament
“We have received reports, and we are delighted to have the opportunity to host the IPL in Sri Lanka. We would commence discussions with the BCCI over this as soon as possible,” the SLC’s secretary Mohan de Silva has said, as reported by Cricbuzz.
Silva also expressed optimism about the situation in Sri Lanka amid the outbreak of the virus. “The Covid situation here in Sri Lanka is not awful at all, and you can be certain that we will be very warm hosts,” the SLC secretary said further.
Since the result of the epidemic, the BCCI is already on its toes, as the current domestic season has been suspended. The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy were started in the manner that had been planned. In the meanwhile, the next Ranji Trophy had to be postponed, and the Cooch Behar U19 Trophy had to be halted halfway through because of the situation.
The BCCI will also have a hurdle in hosting the IPL in 2022, especially with the inclusion of two new clubs from Ahmedabad and Gujarat in the competition. In addition, the new franchisees have been given until January 22 to finish their recruiting processes.
“They have till 5 p.m. on January 22 to finalize their signings,” according to a BCCI official.”
According to the auction timetable, the mega auction will take place during the second week of February. In addition, VIVO has withdrawn as the IPL’s title sponsor, and TATA has taken over as the new sponsor.
The tournament always generates big revenue and every country wants to cash in on it, amid this ongoing pandemic
There is no doubt that the IPL is the biggest tournament in the cricketing world at present. It is a cash-cow, not just for the BCCI but for the ICC as well, which means that every organization and country associated with it, tries to maximize their profits during this competition.
With that being said, the situation of Covid has intensified in the past few months once again, with the second wave and third wave impacting the world. India has also been affected by the pandemic once again. The BCCI wants to ensure the safety of the players and everyone else involved with the tournament.
Keeping that in mind, the governing body of Indian cricket and of the IPL tournament, wanted to keep alternative options to host the competition, without any stoppages or problems. There were some options being discussed, with India, UAE and even Sri Lanka as potential options.
Though nothing has been fixed yet, a call could be made in the upcoming weeks, with the venue of the tournament being finalized. Last year, the tournament started off in the Indian subcontinent, but the increase of Covid cases, had to be moved to the middle-east.
The BCCI does not want a similar situation this time around and will be hoping to plan it well. To add to that, the T20 World Cup that is to be held in Australia, will also be a factor in the planning of the overall schedule. Keeping these things in mind, let’s see how everything develops in the month of February, when the final call will be made.
