IPL postponement being considered: Maharashtra health minister
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh tope on Saturday (March 7) said that a discussion is underway on the postponement of the upcoming 13th edition of the Indian Premier League in view of the coronavirus outbreak in the country.
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Saturday (March 7) said that a discussion is underway on the postponement of the upcoming 13th edition of the Indian Premier League in view of the coronavirus outbreak in the country.
“There is always a danger of spread (of contagious diseases) when people gather in large numbers. Such events can always be organised later. So discussion is on whether to postpone the IPL,” Tope told reporters in Nagpur even as no confirmed cases of coronavirus has been reported in Maharashtra yet.
Related news: IPL very much on, all measures will be in place to handle coronavirus threat: Ganguly
The news comes a day after BCCI President Sourav Ganguly told PTI that the annual T20 cricket extravaganza is “very much on schedule” and asserted that all measures will be in place to tackle the rapidly-spreading COVID-19 infection which has wreaked havoc on sporting calendars globally.
“IPL is very much on. Everywhere, the tournaments are going on. England are already in Sri Lanka. South Africa are here. There are no issues,” Ganguly asserted. “County teams are travelling all over the world. They are travelling to Abu Dhabi, UAE to play. So there is no problem,” he added.
The former India captain also informed that precautionary measures are being taken to ensure that players and fans are not affected and a medical team is thrashing out the specifics.
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“We will take all precautions. I don’t know exactly what are the extra measures. Its only medical team which will tell us about that,” he said. “The medical team is already in touch with the hospitals so that everything is available. We will do what the doctors say. They are the professionals. “All medical issues will be addressed by the medical team. Every tournament will go on,” he added.
The glitzy T20 tournament is scheduled to start from March 29 in Mumbai with a match between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.
(With inputs from agencies)
