IPL Governing Council to meet soon to discuss tournament schedule, says Brijesh Patel

In a good news for Indian Premier League (IPL) fans, IPL Governing Council chairman Brijesh Patel confirmed on Tuesday (July 21) that the members of Governing Council would meet in the next 7-10 days to discuss the scheduling of the franchise-based tournament. Patel added that the Board of Cricket in Control for India (BCCI) would also seek permission from the Centre to go ahead with IPL 2020.

"The governing council meeting is expected in 7-10 days time. There will be discussions on the scheduling of the tournament and we will also look at the operational aspect," Patel told ANI.

"We will continue to look at the coronavirus situation till September then we will decide whether we host the tournament in India or UAE. We have to take the permission of the government as it is mandatory," he added.

Notably, the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday (July 20) postponed the Men’s T20 World Cup due to coronavirus COVID-19 spread. The marquee event was originally scheduled to take place from October 18 to November 15 in Australia.

The decision was announced following a meeting of the IBC Board--the commercial subsidiary of the ICC), the press release from the world's cricket governing body stated. 

Meanwhile, the IPL 2020 edition was slated to commence from March 29 this year, but it had to be postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic. Speculations are rife that the tournament would be held in 2020 as the T20 World Cup has been cancelled now. The BCCI is expected to hold the tournament in September-November window.

UAE is being viewed by many as one of the best countries to host the cash-rich tournament, however, the BCCI has not clarified as to where they are looking to host the tournament outside India.