PUNE: The Indian Premier League Governing Council (IPL GC) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday, in an emergency meeting unanimously decided to postpone IPL 2021 season, with immediate effect.

The BCCI does not want to compromise on the safety of the players, support staff, and the other participants involved in organising the IPL. This decision was taken keeping the safety, health, and well-being of all the stakeholders in mind. “These are difficult times, especially in India and while we have tried to bring in some positivity and cheer, however, it is imperative that the tournament is now suspended and everyone goes back to their families and loved ones in these trying times,” the BCCI said in an official statement. The BCCI also said that it will do everything in its powers to arrange for the secure and safe passage of all the participants in IPL 2021.

The BCCI also thanked all the healthcare workers, state associations, players, support staff, franchises, sponsors, partners, and all the service providers who have tried their best to organise IPL 2021 even in these extremely difficult times.

Earlier, BCCI’s vice-president Rajeev Shukla had confirmed the development to ANI. “IPL has been suspended, we will see whether we can reschedule it, it is not cancelled. It is just suspended for now,” he said.

However, is keen to tap the September window before the T20 World Cup to finish the league. Speaking to ANI, a senior BCCI official in the know of developments said that if the COVID-19 situation is under control in September, the 14th edition of the league can be completed.

“Why not? If the foreign players are available and the COVID-19 situation is in control, we can definitely look at that window before the T20 WC. It can in fact act as a good preparation ground for the showpiece event,” the official said

The T20 World Cup is set to be played in India in October and November.

Asked about the situation with regards to the return of the foreign players who were part of the league, the official said: “As mentioned by BCCI earlier as well, it shall be ensured that all the players reach home safely. Planning is on and a clear picture will be out by tomorrow on their travel routes.”

Earlier in the day, BCCI Secretary Jay Shah said that keeping an eye on the current COVID-19 situation, the BCCI and IPL Governing Council decided to postpone the league.

“The BCCI and the IPL GC have unanimously decided to postpone the 2021 season till further notice. We don’t wish to compromise the safety of the players, the people involved, the employees, the groundsmen, the match officials, every single person involved,” he told ANI.

SunRisers Hyderabad wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha tested positive on Tuesday morning after there were COVID-19 cases in two franchises on Monday. While two of the members of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) contingent tested positive, two Kolkata Knight Riders players tested positive — Varun Chakaravarthy and Sandeep Warrier — forcing the BCCI to postpone the KKR-RCB game in Ahmedabad.

With Saha testing positive, the game on Tuesday evening between SRH and defending champions Mumbai Indians also needed to be postponed.

Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchises have asked the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to stage the remaining matches of this edition of the showpiece event in UAE instead of Karachi amid the fresh surge in coronavirus cases in the country.

PSL six was postponed after a string of COVID-19 cases were reported in March this year.

The tournament will now resume on June 1 with the final scheduled for June 20. According to a report in ESPNcricinfo, all six teams have sent a letter to PCB and the board is reviewing the current situation.

For now, the franchises will assemble in Karachi by May 23 to start the mandatory seven-day isolation.

Last month, the Board of Governors (BoG) of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) met through a virtual conference call and the board received a presentation and an update on the report of the two-person fact-finding panel that was set-up by the PCB chairman to review the bio-security protocols, bylaws, and arrangements for the PSL.

After the date of resumption of PSL six was revealed, the teams participated in a replacement draft to fill in the gaps as many overseas cricketers had pulled out of the showpiece event.

Bangladesh star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, New Zealand opener Martin Guptill and Andre Russell are set to feature in the remaining matches of the PSL six for Lahore Qalandars, Karachi Kings, and Quetta Gladiators respectively as their names were submitted as replacement pick in an online session held with the franchise representatives.

PSL 6 foreign replacements:

Islamabad United: Usman Khawaja replaces Alex Hales, Janneman Malan replaces Lewis Gregory.

Karachi Kings: Martin Guptill replaces Colin Ingram, Thisara Perera replaces Mohammad Nabi, Najeebullah Zadran replaces Dan Christian, Litton Das replaces Joe Clarke

Lahore Qalandars: Shakib-al-Hasan replaces Rashid Khan, James Faulkner replaces David Wiese, Joe Burns replaces Samit Patel, Callum Fergusson replaces Tom Abell, Seekuge Prasana replaces Joe Denly

Only 29 matches of the IPL have been played so far and owing to the postponement, BCCI is expecting a loss of around Rs. 2300 to 2500 crores. However, the Governing Council has been forced to take the right steps keeping in mind the interests of the players and the support staff. Many questions also arise in this scenario.

When Varun Chakraborty had a shoulder strain, why was he allowed to go to the hospital outside and hence breaking the bio bubble? Keeping in view the condition of the city and the hospitals nowadays, it should not have been done. The KKR representative clearly says that he had obtained permission from the BCCI for a hospital scan of Varun’s shoulder.

Varun Chakraborty’s health did not deteriorate in a day, when he was not in a comfortable position then why he was not dropped in the previous match against Delhi Capitals.

L. Balaji, bowling coach of CSK, sat in his team’s dugout in the match against Mumbai Indians, five days before he tested positive. When the provision of testing was for every two days, it is likely that he did not get tested at the right time.

When Devdutt Padikkal was a regular member of RCB, why he was not quarantined in the hotel after he tested positive? Why were the mandatory quarantine rules not imposed on him when he came from home, when most of the teams opposed it? And why was he allowed to practice in the nets along with his team mates without spending his quarantine properly?

RCB leg-spinner Adam Zampa said that Covid-19 safety regulations in India were not as strictly followed as they were in the UAE last year.

The action plan was prepared when the tournament was taken to Mumbai. There Wankhede and Brabourne Stadium are within walking distance and there are many five-star hotels nearby as well. If this action plan had been prepared earlier as an alternative arrangement, the IPL could have been saved from being postponed.

The next leg of the IPL was scheduled to be held in Kolkata and Bengaluru. A large number of cases were coming up in Bengaluru. For the third phase, teams would have faced severe difficulties to reach those places and adjust to the situation.

RCB refused to play against KKR and CSK refused to play against Rajasthan Royals, however, such initiatives should have been taken by the Governing Council of the IPL.

Australia and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) pacer Pat Cummins admitted that few Aussies players were “anxious” after Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the travel ban.

Morrison had last week announced a ban on passenger flights from India till May 15 and he also said that there would be no special privileges given to the Australian players in India. “As soon as the hard border shut, obviously no-one has experienced that before. It added a bit of anxiety for a few of the Aussies over here. But we signed up to play the tournament until the start of June. Hopefully it all reopens on May 15 and we’ll be able to get back,” Cummins told Fox Sports’ The Back Page before the BCCI announced on Tuesday that the IPL has been postponed.

According to Fox Sports, the Australian Prime Minister had also announced that if any person who had been in India tried to return home, the person may face jail time. The Australian vice-captain admitted Morrison’s comments came as a shock. “Yeah, it did a little bit. Once we flew out of Australia we knew we were signing up for 14 days quarantine coming home, so you always feel that little bit further away from getting home,” said Cummins.

The IPL 2021 was being held at four venues during the league stage before the tournament was postponed. “Last year we had the IPL held over in the UAE and that was an incredibly well-run tournament,” said Cummins.

“This year, they tried to push it that little step further and have it over here in multiple cities in India. I’m sure looking back they might have tweaked a few things,” he added.

The IPL Governing Council (GC) and BCCI on Tuesday in an emergency meeting unanimously decided to postpone IPL 2021 season, with immediate effect.

Meanwhile, Cricket Australia said that it is in direct contact with the BCCI to ensure safe accommodation and repatriation of the Australian contingent.

Hours after the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 was postponed, Cricket Australia said that it is in direct contact with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to ensure safe accommodation and repatriation of the Australian contingent.

“Cricket Australia and the Australian Cricketers’ Association understand the decision of the BCCI to indefinitely postpone the 2021 Indian Premier League for the safety and wellbeing of all participants,” a joint statement from Cricket Australia (CA) and ACA read. “CA is in direct contact with the BCCI as they work through plans to ensure the safe accommodation and repatriation of Australian players, coaches, match officials, and commentators back home to Australia,” it added.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison had last week announced a ban on passenger flights from India till May 15 and he also said that there would be no special privileges given to the Australian players in India.

Cricket Australia said it will not seek an exemption on the travel ban and thanked BCCI for their efforts to ensure the safety of all participants at the IPL.

Sri Lanka’s all-rounder Thisara Perera on Monday announced his retirement from international cricket.

Thisara conveyed the news of his retirement to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Monday morning, reported ESPNcricinfo. The 32-year-old all-rounder has also confirmed that he will continue to play franchise cricket. He will continue playing for Jaffna Stallions in the Lanka Premier League (LPL).

Perera played 6 Tests in his career, managing to score 203 runs and he also took 11 wickets.

The left-handed batsman was known more for his antics in the white-ball format. He represented Sri Lanka in 166 ODIs, smashing 2,338 runs.

In the 50-over format, he also scalped 175 wickets. Talking about his T20I career, he picked 51 wickets while producing 1,204 runs.

He was also a part of the Indian Premier League (IPL) till 2016 and he played for teams like Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Kochi Tuskers Kerala, and Rising Pune Supergiants.

Perera was also a part of Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup-winning squad in 2014.

The Badminton World Federation on Monday announced that India shuttler PV Sindhu and Canada’s Michelle Li have been nominated as athlete ambassadors for the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) ‘Believe in Sport’ campaign aimed at preventing competition manipulation.

Sindhu and Li will be working alongside other athlete ambassadors from around the world to raise awareness on the topic of competition manipulation amongst athletes and entourage. The pair have been global ambassadors for BWF’s ‘i am badminton’ campaign since April 2020. World champion and Rio Olympics silver medallist PV Sindhu said of joining the IOC’s ‘Believe in Sport’ campaign: “It is an honour to be nominated by the IOC as an athlete ambassador. I stand alongside my fellow athletes in the fight against any form of cheating or competition manipulation. Together we are stronger.”

2014 Commonwealth Games champion Li added: “We all want to be on the same start line. It’s so important to be fair as that’s a true representation of what your ability is.”

In badminton, manipulation or match fixing includes influencing the course or the result of a badminton match in order to obtain an advantage for the individual or others; and removing all or part of the uncertainty normally associated with the course or results of a competition.

Protecting honest athletes and keeping sport fair is a top priority for the Olympic Movement and both the IOC and BWF are committed to fighting all forms of cheating that threaten the integrity and essence of sport.

BWF Secretary General Thomas Lund said: “Competition manipulation has become an increasingly global concern and protecting honest players is a top priority for the BWF. By joining forces with the IOC in nominating two of our most popular players, Pusarla and Li as ambassadors, we believe we can have a positive impact in the fight to protect integrity in sport.”

The IOC’s ‘Believe in Sport’ campaign was launched in 2018 to raise awareness among athletes, coaches and officials of the threat of competition manipulation.