CHENNAI: It's business as usual inside the offices of the Indian broadcaster ahead of the T20 World Cup, beginning in India and Sri Lanka from February 7. While the wider cricketing world continues to engage in back of the envelope based calculations with respect to potential losses if the India - Pakistan match doesn't go ahead, it's understood that the bosses at JioStar haven't held any high level formal discussions about channel listings on February 15 if the match doesn't go ahead. Inside the Mumbai headquarters of the media giant, there's still belief that as the clock ticks down to next Sunday, the match will go ahead.
However, if the match doesn't happen, it's understood that insurance cover may not cover a 'forfeiture'. Typically, matches are covered by insurance packages so that the organisers can recoup back some money they would have lost in case of a cancellation. But, in this case, a forfeiture isn't going to be a cancellation. The latter is typically a match being abandoned without a ball being bowled due to rain. In such cases, the organisers will typically refund ticket money back to the fans while they money back thanks to the insurance cover depending upon the clauses in the package they have taken out.
According to several industry sources, if the India - Pakistan match was to be washed out due to rain, the match would be termed as a 'cancellation' or 'abandoned due to rain' for the purposes of insurance. However, if one team doesn't take the field, a 'forfeiture' doesn't necessarily come under any insurance cover. In such a case, the broadcaster or the organisers would be staring at a total loss without hoping to recoup back anything, including ticket sales.
