The BCCI have confirmed that the current season of the IPL has been postponed with immediate effect for one week, due to tensions between India and Pakistan.
The decision to suspend the IPL was taken after senior BCCI officials, Saikia and IPL chairman Arun Dhumal, got on a call, among the participants. All the franchises were informed about the suspension before the statement was issued at 2.40pm IST. It is understood that the participants on the call agreed unanimously that it was not appropriate to continue the IPL in the current environment.
Many fans speculated that this would happen, seeing as the game between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals got abandoned, as both sides were playing in Dharamsala. Indian officials said it was due to a military base in Pathankot, about 80km away from the stadium, was targeted by “missiles and drones”. Floodlights were turned off and fans asked to leave while the players and staff of the two teams were rushed away from the ground, some still wearing their pads.
If India can’t continue hosting the remaining games of the tournament, it has been said that England are open to hosting the remainder of the cricket games, with the play-offs, semi finals and finals to be confirmed.
According to The Guardian, Richard Gould, the ECB’s chief executive, has already reached out to his equivalents at the BCCI offering his support. Should India be unable to restart the IPL after this week-long hiatus, one suggestion is for England to host the remaining fixtures later in the year.
With 58 games played and 12 group-stage fixtures remaining, plus four playoff ties, the BCCI must now decide if and how to complete the competition. IPL seasons have been fully or partially relocated on four previous occasions: in 2009 it was played in South Africa because of a clash with Indian elections; in 2014 a similar issue meant the first 20 matches were played in the UAE; in 2020 Indian lockdown rules pushed it back to the UAE and in 2021 the second half of the tournament was also played there, again because of Covid.
Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bengaluru lead the tournament, with Shubhman Gill’s Gujurat Titans in second. Shreyas Iyer’s Punjab Kings are in third, and if they had beaten Delhi Capitals, they would’ve been the first team to confirm their spot in the play offs. Hardik Pandya’s Mumbai Indians are currently in fourth. Chennai Super Kings, Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad have been eliminated, and cannot qualify for the play offs.
