BCCI send acceptance letter to the Emirates Cricket Board for the IPL to take place in the UAE

Brijesh Patel, IPL chairperson, confirmed that the BCCI have sent the acceptance letter granted from their government to the Emirates Cricket Board. Like New Zealand, UAE’s remarkable success in dealing with the COVID-19, and its experience of hosting the first phase of the 2014 IPL put it in the pole position to become the perfect venue […]

By CricXtasy Staff Jul 27, 2020, 02:19 IST

BCCI send acceptance letter to the Emirates Cricket Board for the IPL to take place in the UAE

Brijesh Patel, IPL chairperson, confirmed that the BCCI have sent the acceptance letter granted from their government to the Emirates Cricket Board.

Like New Zealand, UAE’s remarkable success in dealing with the COVID-19, and its experience of hosting the first phase of the 2014 IPL put it in the pole position to become the perfect venue for a league that generates 11 billion dollars a year and draw the biggest international superstars in cricket. The postponement of the 2020 T20 World Cup (October 18-November 15) due to the travel restrictions in Australia, the host country, gave the BCCI the window to stage the delayed IPL in the UAE.

Patel told the Khaleej Times on Sunday, “Yes, we have sent the acceptance letter to the Emirates Cricket Board and both the boards will be working together from now on to stage the tournament. The teams need at least three to four weeks to prepare for the tournament.”

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Although there has been no confirmation from the ECB yet on receiving the acceptance letter from the BCCI, the ECB general secretary, Mubashir Usmani, revealed that the country’s cricket board would make an announcement through a ‘press release’ on Monday. He told the Khaleej Times, “We (the ECB) are going to send a press release on the issue tomorrow (Monday). But at this point in time, I cannot reveal more than that.”

The BCCI is expected to make an official announcement after the IPL Governing Council meeting this week. The richest cricket board also needs the stamp of approval from the Indian government to stage the tournament in a foreign country.

Last week, this was what Mubashir Usmani was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo, “We are ready to fully support the IPL if it chooses to come and play in the UAE. We will provide all the support concerning the protocol and government permission required to host the IPL. We are waiting for written confirmation from BCCI.”