Safe conduct of IPL is the only aim for BCCI

The Indian Premier League 2020 (IPL 2020) is all set to be held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with chairman Brijesh Patel confirming the same. The IPL 2020 is scheduled to be held between September 19 and November 08. The Indian players and cricketers from other parts of the world are expected to land in the UAE by August 20 to begin preparations for IPL 2020. However, some of England and Australian players like David Warner, Steve Smith, Jofra Archer, Pat Cummins, and Ben Stokes could miss the start of IPL 2020 as the two teams will be locked in a bilateral series which will reportedly end on September 16.

The countdown leading to their arrivals in the Dubai Sports City will begin in almost a month’s time. The state of the art Dubai Sports City has the Dubai International Stadium and the ICC Academy.

The stadium has nine wickets on the top which can successfully sustain the riveting double headers, tentatively scheduled from 19 September 2020 when the first ball of the season will be bowled, to the finals on 8th November 2020 when the curtains for the season will come down. “The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the teams are putting a lot of efforts to make the league a success. The event will positively impact the mood and sentiment of the nation, which is under lockdown since March,” Wadia said.

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If the matches were not held, then the teams, the broadcaster, the BCCI, and other stakeholders would have taken a massive financial hit. Star would have lost Rs 3,500 crore this year as it had won the bid to broadcast the event for five years.

Wadia said the IPL edition would be the most watched IPL event ever as a large part of the population was under lockdown.

“There is no fresh content on TV and people are now looking forward to the games to bring freshness, optimism and cheer. I am quite sure this will be the most-watched TV event ever,” Wadia said.