The outbreak of the Corona Virus has brought the world to a standstill. It has halted all the sporting events. It is done as a safety measure to avoid the mass gathering of crowds. The cricketing calendar has suffered because of the same. India’s apex cricketing body, BCCI suspended the 13th edition of IPL 2020 for an indefinite period due to the same.  Reports suggest IPL might be held behind closed doors later this year. The CEO of IPL franchise KKR, Venky Mysore has said that fans can be virtually present on the ground if not physically.

If the IPL is played, it will be behind closed doors Even the players will find it very unfamiliar experience to play the cash-rich tournament without any cheering noisy fans. The same goes for cricket followers who will miss the atmosphere and be away from the action.

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Speaking during an ESPNcricinfo Stump Mic podcast, Venky Mysore said, “We’re definitely going to have some challenges. If we’re lucky enough that things will settle down or the tournament will take place later this year, it’s clearly going to be in what they’ll call as a stadium lockdown mode.”

He continued, “This means straightaway the ticket revenues are affected, your food and beverage revenue is affected, the merchandising sales at the stadium is affected.”

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He added, “The challenge to us is how do you activate the sponsors? Are there ways in which you can compensate for this? Technology is going to play a massive role. I am just saying, if you’re thinking out of the box – an LED wall in stands where, through social media, [fans] can virtually be present there. There are people who’ll be reacting the same way if they were physically at the ground. People have said something about simulation too.”