Picture Credit: Twitter/@ICC/@BCCI
In the light of the ongoing COVID-19 situation in India, the organization of the upcoming T20 World Cup in the country has been put under clouds of doubt. Although BCCI had shortlisted Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai, Lucknow, Dharamsala, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad as the host cities for the event earlier this year, the second wave of Coronavirus in the country and the subsequent suspension of IPL 2021 has put the mega-event in jeopardy. UAE has emerged as the leading contender to replace India as the hosts of the World Cup, set to be played in months of October and November.
BCCI gets one month's time to come up with a concrete plan
Considering a huge potential loss for BCCI if they lose the hosting rights, it was reported that the board will ask for some time from ICC to come up with the final decision on the same. As per reports, the plea has been accepted by the cricket governing council on Tuesday. “Yes, the ICC board has agreed to BCCI’s request and they will have time till June 28 to decide on hosting the T20 World Cup In India. They will come back to the board next month with a concrete plan," a source close to ICC board told PTI on Tuesday.
BCCI will notably observe how things pan out in the month of June in terms of COVID-19 situation in the country. There are also reports that the board is considering hosting the event in only three venues, with Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad hosting the matches. It will be intriguing to see how things unfold in the next few days. However, if the board do not come up with a final plan by June 28, the tournament might shift to UAE although BCCI will retain the hosting rights.