'India to go to Sri Lanka for limited-overs series after WTC final' - Sourav Ganguly denies possibility of holding remaining IPL in India

The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) was postponed for an indefinite time in the wake of the increase in the positive coronavirus cases among the players and support staff. Ever since the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has suspended the T20 Championship, the talks regarding a potential window for hosting the remaining matches have been doing rounds on social media.

It was speculated that the Indian Board can think on the lines of conduction the tournament in the month of July. Team India is scheduled to play the World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand in England from June 18 to June 22. After this, they will lock horns against the England side in a five-match Test series from August 4.

Thus, many were of the view that BCCI can host the league in July. However, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has quashed all such hopes stating that after WTC, India will be flying to Sri Lanka for three-match ODI series followed by five T20Is. Ganguly also stressed the fact that IPL 2021 can’t happen in India as the quarantine is pretty tough to handle.

“India is supposed to go to Sri Lanka for three ODIs and five T20Is. There are lots of organizational hazards like 14-day quarantine. It can’t happen in India. This quarantine is tough to handle. Too early to say how we can find a slot to complete the IPL,” he said.

You can say that now in hindsight that the IPL should have been called off earlier: Sourav Ganguly

Further, the former Indian captain opined on the reasons that resulted in the postponement of the T20 extravaganza. Ganguly asserted that people will say a lot of things regarding whether the tournament should have been hosted on not or what went wrong. The 48-year-old reckoned that IPL 2021 would have been completed but the trouble began when the players started testing positive.

“You can say that now in hindsight that the IPL should have been called off earlier. Mumbai and Chennai (bio bubbles) did not have cases. Only when the IPL reached Delhi and Ahmedabad did the cases rise. People will say a lot of things in any case. 

“…we would have continued if there were no cases. We would have completed the IPL. The players were in the bubble and there were no crowds at the venues. Players were not getting infected. Once the players got affected, we called it off. Look at leagues going around the world. They have had Covid cases, but they have continued,” Sourav Ganguly concluded.

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