IPL 2021: What next for phase 2?

With Sri Lanka being the latest contender, there are now four countries that promise to be capable hosts for the remaining fixtures of the IPL 2021. With the recent developments in the account, England, UAE, Sri Lanka, and Australia have offered the BCCI to host the IPL.

Originally, the resumption of the IPL would have been attempted in India itself, but looking at the current pandemic situation, conducting it abroad would serve as a better option. Along with the fact that it would prove to be safer, it also entails multiple sources of mutual profits of the boards involved.

The board that hosts the IPL will have adequate knowledge of the fact that the BCCI invests a gigantic amount of money for the IPL. UAE are well aware of the situation since the Emirates Cricket Board received 98.5 crores for hosting last year’s IPL. Adding to that, it is not viable in India to host the event with the presence of an audience. On the other hand, it would be possible for fans to watch the matches in the stadiums abroad.

The BCCI desires to conduct the remaining 31 IPL matches in September after India returns from the four-test series in England. They would also be looking to steer clear of the T20 World Cup that is scheduled towards the end of the year.

The best bet for the venue where the IPL could be resuming would be UAE, where the IPL was hosted last year as well. In light of the COVID related circumstances currently, the T20 World Cup is likely to be hosted by UAE as well. In that case, it would be a convenient affair for the players to go back to the same place for another tournament.

Since the Indian team are scheduled to fly to England at the end of May to play the World Test Championship against New Zealand, shifting the IPL to England could also be an option. The only factor which puts it behind in the list is the expense that comes along with hosting a tournament in England.

Australia and Sri Lanka are the less significant considerations in this conversation. With Australia, it involves a huge deal of travel and the fact that the Australian government’s policies don’t favour the cause. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka is not a very popular contender solely because the teams and their players are likely to be sceptical of travelling to Sri Lanka right before the World Cup.