Indian Premier League likely to restart in September

New Delhi, May 25

The postponed Indian Premier League will likely resume on September 18 or 19 in the UAE with as many as 10 double-headers expected to be played during a three-week window, a senior BCCI official told PTI today.

The final might be held on October 9 or 10. The three-week window will be enough for the league to complete its remaining 31 games for the season. The IPL was postponed on May 4 after multiple Covid-19 cases inside its bio-bubble came to light.

“The BCCI has spoken to all the stakeholders and the likely start could be between September 18th and 20th. Since September 18 is a Saturday and 19 a Sunday, it is more likely that you would want to re-start it on a weekend date,” the official told PTI on conditions of anonymity. “Similarly, October 9th or 10th will be the final as it’s a weekend. We are finalising the itinerary and there will be 10 double-headers and seven evening matches along with four main games (two qualifiers, one eliminator and the final), which completes the list of 31 matches,” the official added.

The Indian team’s last Test match against England is set to finish on September 14 at Manchester. On the next day, the players will be flown to UAE in a charter flight for a “bubble to bubble” transfer.

“The Indian team and the English players will fly in the same charter flight from Manchester to Dubai. The West Indies players will also fly in after the Caribbean Premier League. There will be a three-day quarantine for players arriving from UK and the Caribbean,” the source said. — PTI

India’s white-ball series against SA cancelled?

The BCCI has decided to cancel India’s T20 series against South Africa scheduled in September, which was a build-up to the side’s World T20 preparations. “The series can’t be held and in any case there can’t be any better preparation for the T20 World Cup than playing a high intensity tournament like IPL,” a BCCI official said. “Since the T20 World Cup will start within a week or 10 days after completion of the IPL, the SA series can only be held at a later date.”