CHENNAI: Following the ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan, the BCCI is closely monitoring the situation and will take a call on the resumption of the Indian Premier League after consulting with the government authorities. Meanwhile, it is learnt that the Indian cricket board had already informed the franchises to assemble at their respective centres by May 15 as it is hoping to resume the league before the upcoming weekend.
The 2025 season of the IPL was suspended on Friday after the cross border tension between India and Pakistan escalated. On Thursday, the game between Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans was called off midway in Dharamsala as a precautionary measure. "The decision was taken by the IPL Governing Council after due consultation with all key stakeholders following the representations from most of the franchisees, who conveyed the concern and sentiments of their players, and also the views of the broadcaster, sponsors and fans; while the BCCI reposes full faith in the strength and preparedness of our armed forces, the Board considered it prudent to act in the collective interest of all stakeholders," BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia had said in a statement on Friday.
In the days that followed, both India and Pakistan have agreed to a ceasefire which has now given the BCCI some breathing space to discuss and decide on the resumption of the 10-team tournament. With 12 league games, including the Punjab versus Delhi game that was called off, and four play-off games remaining, they are potentially looking to extend the schedule closer to May 30. Earlier, the final was scheduled to be played on May 25 in Kolkata. If the tournament extends beyond the original schedule, one has to wait and see whether all Australian and South African players will be able to come back and stay for the entirety of the tournament as they are scheduled to play the World Test Championship final in England from June 11. Meanwhile, the Punjab franchise head coach Ricky Ponting and their support staff seem to have stayed back in the country.
It also remains to be seen whether the tournament will be played in select venues, especially in the Southern part of the country (Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Visakhapatnam), with multiple double-headers to finish the tournament on time. The picture is expected to get clearer in the next couple of days as the BCCI top brass meets and finalises the schedule.
Saikia, while responding to this daily, said that the board will begin consulting with franchises, broadcasters and state associations in the next few days. "The BCCI suspended the IPL on Friday for a period of seven days, and, today, we are on the third day with five more days left. The BCCI is closely monitoring the evolving situation and developments, and will take a call on IPL resumption after consulting all stakeholders of IPL and the concerned Government authorities," Saikia said. "In the next (few) days, we will begin consultations with the franchises, broadcasters, sponsors and the state associations slated to host the remaining matches before crystallizing to a decision on the league's resumption. Given the importance of IPL at this juncture, it will also be prudent and necessary to take the nod of the Government of India before finalising the time for its restart. BCCI will duly announce the date of ipl restart once the whole process is over in due course of time," he added.