Reports: BCCI in talks with CWI to prepone CPL 2021 to avoid clash with IPL resumption

The Board of Control for Cricket in India is in talks with the Cricket West Indies to prepone the start of the Caribbean Premier League, scheduled to be played at St. Kitts & Nevis between August 28 and September 19.

The BCCI has reportedly requested the board to advance the start of the league by a week or 10 days to ensure a seamless bubble-to-bubble transfer of players for the IPL’s resumption in September.

In a virtually held Special General Meeting on Saturday (29th May 2021), the members collectively decided to host the remaining IPL season in the UAE in the September-October window after the league was indefinitely postponed earlier this month due to Covid-19 cases emerging inside the bio-secure environment prepared for the league.

We are hoping that the CPL can be finished earlier: BCCI source

A source close to the development confirmed on Sunday the following, “We are in talks with Cricket West Indies. We are hoping that if CPL can be finished a few days in advance, it would help in bubble to bubble transfer of all players to Dubai and in time to complete the mandatory three-day quarantine.”

Similarly, the West Indies players will also fly in after completing the Caribbean Premier League engagements. There will be a three-day quarantine for players arriving from the UK and the Caribbean,” the official added, as reported by the Hindustan Times.

The upcoming edition will be the CPL’s ninth season and will feature a host of IPL superstars and players from across the world. If the BCCI and its West Indian counterpart fail to reach an agreement, some of the biggest names in the IPL 2021 could potentially miss at least the first few games of the resumed season.

These include Mumbai Indians’ Kieron Pollard, Kolkata Knight Riders’ Andre Russell, Punjab Kings’ Chris Gayle, Delhi Capitals’ Shimron Hetmyer and Chennai Super Kings’ Dwayne Bravo, among others. Trinbago Knight Riders coach Brendon McCullum, who is associated with KKR in the same role, might also have to give a miss to his duties for the time being.