On Wednesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) treasurer Arun Dhumal reckons that the International Cricket Council (ICC) needs to decide the fate of the T20 World Cup 2020, given the host nation has expressed doubts over hosting the tournament as scheduled in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
During a chat with India Today, Dhumal said there is ‘nothing much left’ for the ICC after Cricket Australia chairman Earl Eddings said on Tuesday that Australia’s chances of hosting the 16-team World Cup in October-November is ‘unrealistic’.
The BCCI treasurer said, “When the host nation is showing its inability to host the tournament, there is nothing much left for the ICC. I don’t know why they are delaying. It’s their call, whenever they want to go ahead with the announcement, they can. But sooner the better for world cricket.”
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On Tuesday, Cricket Australia (CA) chairman Earl Eddings went on to acknowledge that organizing the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia this year in the midst of a global coronavirus pandemic seems “unrealistic” for the board. The tournament is scheduled to take place from October 18 to November 15, and officials have previously said they are planning for it to proceed on those dates.
However, the fact remains the same that many global borders still shut due to virus-related travel restrictions, Eddings conceded that was looking increasingly unlikely.
During a chat with the reporters on Tuesday, Eddings said, “While it hasn’t been formally called off this year, or postponed, trying to get 16 countries into Australia in the current world, where most countries are still going through COVID spiking, I think it’s unrealistic, or it’s going to be very, very difficult.”
The ICC, after its board meeting earlier this month, find;t took a final call on the T20 World Cup to July, saying it wants to take a ‘right’ decision as it ‘gets only one chance to make’ it. Meanwhile, Arun Dhumal reiterated that the BCCI is certainly looking to host IPL 2020 in the September-October window if the T20 World Cup is postponed to a later date.
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“We will definitely look for that window in case they confirm they are not hosting. But it has come from the ICC also. These fillers have been coming and accordingly, we are working towards that window,” Dhumal said.
While IPL governing council chairman Brijesh Patel told indiatoday.in that India will be the first-choice host nation for IPL 2020, Arun Dhumal said the BCCI is exploring options and will decide on a venue that can assure health and safety of the players and the stakeholders.
