BCCI officials land in Dubai to plan remainder of IPL

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly will join the delegation on Wednesday, after attending the virtual board meeting of the International Cricket Council.

Still from IPL 2021 in India: Chennai Super Kings' Imran Tahir celebrates a dismissal with Suresh Raina while Ravindra Jadeja looks on.

The office-bearers of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, including secretary Jay Shah, reached Dubai on Monday by a charter flight to figure out the preparations for the remainder of the Indian Premier League.  

The officials will be meeting the local authorities to plan the tournament scheduled in the September-October window in the United Arab Emirates. BCCI president Sourav Ganguly will join the delegation on Wednesday, after attending the virtual board meeting of the International Cricket Council.

Bubble and quarantine

Since a few players and support staff had tested positive for COVID-19 in the IPL, the officials will have to sort out the quarantine period of the arriving cricketers with the local authorities.

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"The tournament will cover Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. There will be at least 10 double-headers, so the Board top brass will have to figure out the logistics and the protocols before finalising the SOP," a Board insider said. The BCCI delegation comprising treasurer Arun Dhumal, joint secretary Jayesh George, vice-president Rajiv Shukla, interim CEO Hemang Amin and GM, Game Development, Dhiraj Malhotra will visit the stadiums with the ECB officials to figure out the roadmap. There will be discussions on the vaccination for players and other stakeholders before joining the bio-bubble. There is a possibility that the Board will go back to the UK-based company which had created the bio-bubble in IPL 2020.

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There is still no confirmation if spectators will be allowed to view the games. The Pakistan Super League - which will be held in Abu Dhabi soon - will also be a closed-door affair.  "For us, hosting the IPL is very important. We will follow the guidelines issued by the local administration and act accordingly. It's too early to comment on whether fans will be allowed," a Board official said

T20 World Cup discussion In the ICC meeting, the BCCI will brief the members about the tax exemption update concerning the T20 World Cup. And the ICC is expected to deliberate on the Future Tours and Programmes (FTP).

The BCCI will officially request the ICC for a month's time to decide the fate of the T20 World Cup. "While the BCCI is confident that it can host the tournament in India, hosting the games in three or venues, it is also important that we keep a backup. When the Board top brass meets the officials of the Emirates Cricket Board, there could be discussions on World T20 as well," a BCCI insider said.

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The ICC had earlier indicated that the UAE - which has three international stadiums across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah - could be used as an option for the T20 World Cup if things did not improve in India.

The ICC is expected to take a final decision on the WT20 venue in its annual meeting on July 18.