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COVID-19 Fallout: India’s Popular Cricket League To Be Played In UAE |
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The world's most popular cricket sport league will be played for the third time in the UAE in September-October this year, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced today. Indian Premier League (IPL), which has an estimated brand value of $ 6.7 billion, is a professional Indian sports league which has millions of fans in India, the sub-continent and in the Gulf. The league was suspended in early May in India after many players tested positive for COVID-19 in India’s second wave of the pandemic. Although Coronavirus infections have started coming down in India, Jay Shah, BCCI’s Honorary Secretary, said the Board resolved to "complete the remaining matches of IPL’s 2021 season in the UAE also considering that the monsoon season in India is in the months of September-October this year." The decision was taken at a Special General Meeting of the Board, held virtually, at which members unanimously agreed to move the IPL to the UAE and resume it in mid-September. The season will last until the second week of October. There will be 31 games during this season. The COVID-19 pandemic last year and a complete lockdown imposed by the Indian government during the traditional IPL season caused the league to move to the UAE for the second time. In 2014, on account of India’s parliamentary elections during the IPL season, the IPL was taken out of India to the UAE for the first time to avoid disruptions to the games because of election activity. |
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