Lanka Premier League to start from November 21

The Lanka Premier League, which was set to make a comeback 8 years later with a new name, now has a starting date; it has been decided that the tournament will get underway from the 21st of November, for which the player draft will take place on the 19th of October, five days from now. 

The players’ draft, which was initially scheduled to take place on the 9th of October, was postponed due to the COVID-19 situation of the country. The tournament is said to span from November 21 to December 13, with 75 overseas players to pick from in the draft.

According to Sri Lanka Cricket, owners for all five franchises have been lined up and international cricketers are willing to play in the tournament despite Sri Lanka’s strict quarantine protocols. Four of the five franchises have found owners who are in the process of finalizing their commitments, said SLC vice-president Ravin Wickramaratne, while the fifth franchise may have up to three bidders. 

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Although the Sri Lanka health authorities are insisting on a 14-day isolated quarantine for foreign cricketers and tournament staff, Wickramaratne said prospective players remained interested. It is hoped that some players presently playing the IPL in the UAE would fly directly to Sri Lanka for the LPL.

The LPL organizers also announced yesterday that the tournament would be played across just two venues – The Pallekele International Cricket Stadium at Pallekele and the Mahinda Rajapaksha International Cricket Stadium at Hambantota – in order to simplify the set-up and for maintenance of biosecure bubbles. Colombo was not considered because the Khettarama Stadium is currently undergoing renovations, while Dambulla has been overlooked.

Franchise T20 tournaments have repeatedly struggled to get off the ground in Sri Lanka. This is partly because the country has a small domestic television market, and also since the SLC has struggled to find a window for the tournament that does not clash with a more established franchise tournament elsewhere. This year, however, SLC has handed over the organization of the tournament to the Dubai-based IPG group, and that seems to have reaped rewards.