While the country was going through a tough time battling the second wave of COVID-19, IPL tried to continue but couldn’t keep the stumps up for long.
Jammu: A month into the tournament and COVID-19 cases on the rise, IPL has been indefinitely suspended proving the fears of the naysayers right. When it was announced that IPL 2021 would go ahead as planned, several were against the idea
The Indian Premier League Governing Council (IPL GC) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had an emergency meeting on the morning of May 4 in which they unanimously decided to postpone the IPL 2021 season.
India’s total coronavirus cases crossed the two crore mark on Tuesday, with more than 3 lakh new cases added over the last 24 hours.
Multiple players and staff members of different teams tested positive for COVID-19, thus the decision to suspend IPL 2021 became indefinitely inevitable.
Chennai Super Kings bowling coach Lakshmipathy Balaji and a member of the travel support staff tested positive for COVID-19 on May 2. BCCI also had to reschedule a match between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on May 3 because two players of KKR tested positive.
“They shouldn’t have hosted IPL this season in India,” said Abhinav Grover, cricket and IPL fan. “UAE hosted it fine last year, and if that was not an option this season, then the BCCI should have looked for other options. COVID-19 ravages India, and that is something they should have considered and not hosted a tournament of this size.”
Media houses like The New Indian Express, on April 25, 2021, announced that they wouldn’t be covering IPL 2021 anymore. In an official statement made by the media house, they said the problem is not with IPL but with its timing.
Michael Vaughan, former England Cricketer, and Captain, in one of his tweets, lauded the decision to postpone the IPL and hoped everyone stays safe.
