Madhurima
MUMBAI: BCCI or the Board Of Control for Cricket in India organised a meet at their headquarters with the owners of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise and it was decided that any further actions taken on the upcoming season of the league will be done while prioritising the best interest of public health due to the life-threatening Coronavirus outbreak.
Before this, on 13 March 2020, it was decided by the BCCI to postpone IPL 13 which was to begin from 29 March 2020 and was to continue till 15 April 2020. This was decided due to the epidemic of the highly contagious COVID-19. More than 80 individuals have been affected in the country, with 2 dead.
Also Read: BCCI Postpones IPL 2020 Due To Coronavirus Fear; Announces New Date
At the meeting, the BCCI and the IPL franchises have come to a conclusion to "reiterated BCCI's stand of putting the safety and well-being of fans, athletes and employees as a priority".
A release by the BCCI also mentioned: "The board will continue to monitor and work closely with the government of India, state governments and other state regulatory bodies to decide on the future course of action in the best interest of public health."
Owner of the team, Kolkata Knight Riders, Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan also attended the meeting. He revealed that the decision has been made to prioritise the safety of the spectators along with the directives issued by the government and health agencies when the 13th season of the cricket league begins.
The king of Bollywood took to Twitter to share the latest update with the people.
1/2 Wonderful to meet all the Franchise owners ‘off the field’ so to say. The meeting by @Bcci and @ipl was to reiterate what all of us feel...safety first of the spectators, players management & cities we play in. All directives of the health agencies & govt to be followed..
— Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) March 14, 2020
2/2. Hope the spread of the virus subsides & the show can go on. BCCI & team owners in consultation with the govt will keep a close watch & decide the way fwd in the health interest of ever1. Lovely 2 meet every1 & then sanitise ourselves repeatedly..@SGanguly99 @JayShah #BPatel
— Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) March 14, 2020
Parth Jindal, the co-owner of the Delhi Capitals also tweeted about the recent meeting.
Wonderful to meet all the @IPL team owners today. Thank you to @SGanguly99 @JayShah and Brijesh Patelji for organizing this meeting. As much as we all want IPL to happen the health and safety of the public, players, staff and all others is of paramount importance - we will (1/2)
— Parth Jindal (@ParthJindal11) March 14, 2020
Continue to monitor the situation and defer to the central government rules and regulations in order to decide next steps. All possible scenarios were discussed however another meeting would be required after a few days to finalize based on the COVID - 19 situation @DelhiCapitals
— Parth Jindal (@ParthJindal11) March 14, 2020
A source aware of the recent developments also mentioned that all the three parties, BCCI, IPL and broadcaster Star came together when faced with a situation like this.
Also Read: Postpone Olympics Rather Than Doing It With No Crowd Says, Donald Trump
The government also cancelled all the visas on 11 March 2020, except for some in the official categories amidst the rising Coronavirus cases. The visas have been cancelled till 15 April 2020.
