IPL 2020 Will Commence On April 15

Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 has been postponed to April 15 from March 29 due to coronavirus scare. The Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) released a statement regarding postponement of IPL.

BCCI statement

The statement reads that the decision to postpone IPL is taken as a precautionary measure as COVID-19 is now become a pandemic. But the statement should be read with the announcement that the Delhi government make about coronavirus. It said that that the government won’t allow any sporting activity in the capital due to health crisis.

The statement further reads that the board is sensitive towards public health and all its stakeholder. Also, it will take all necessary steps to ensure that all people including cricketers and fans remain safe from the virus. The board will work with all concerned ministries and authorities to contain the spread of COVID-19.

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia made announcement

Manish Sisodia said that the gatherings of over 200 people at sporting events or conferences won’t be allowed until further notice. The restrictions on large gatherings were put for the purpose of prevention of COVID-19 epidemic. India has more than 70 coronavirus cases so far.

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Maharashtra Health Minister Wants IPL To Be Postponed

The Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra banned the ticket sales for the first match of the 2020 Indian Premier League. The match is between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings and it is scheduled for March 29.

Maharashtra imposes ban on ticket sale of IPL match

It is to avoid gathering of a large number of people amid the spread of coronavirus in the country. The 13th season of IPL will start on March 29 and continue till May 24 in the country. But Mumbai went into high alert when its total count of COVID-19 patients reached 7. Recently two persons tested positive for coronavirus in Maharashtra.

Health Minister of Maharashtra on the ticket sale ban

Rajesh Tope, the Health Minister of Maharashtra, said that the government cold consider postponing the IPL because of the coronavirus threat that had already killed over 3,000 people worldwide. He said large gatherings pose a greater risk of coronavirus spread. He informed the media persons that discussions were held in the official circle whether to postpone the IPL. He further said that a decision regarding IPL would be made shortly.

Sourav Ganguli on postponement of IPL

Board of Cricket Control in India President Sourav Ganguli asserted that IPL would start as scheduled and there would be no change in dates. He assured that all precautions would be taken to keep things safe. He further said that medical team was ready and in touch with leading hospitals so that everything was available.

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IPL 2020: Mumbai Indians, CSK And Others Revealed Their Fixtures But Rajasthan Royals Withheld The Details

The first fixture of the 13th IPL edition would be as scheduled on March 29 and the last league fixture would be on May 17. Mumbai Indians will play with three-times champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

IPL 2020 fixtures

The defending champion Mumbai Indians took to Twitter to announce their schedule ahead of the tournament. On Sunday, it disclosed that it was happy to play the opening fixture of the tournament. Also, it was traveling to Bengaluru to face challenge from the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

Fresh with a new logo, RCB will kickstart their campaign against Kolkata Night Riders (KKR) at M Chinnaswamy Stadium. KKR is two-time title holder.

But Sunrises Hyderabad (SRH) were the first to among the participants to reveal their home and away fixtures. The 2016 champion SRH will start their campaign against Mumbai Indians that are the defending champions on April 1.

Rajasthan Royals will meet CSK in the first home game of CSK led by former India captain MS Dhoni. But Rajasthan Royals have still not unveiled their schedule. It is learnt that they would reveal their details only after an official announcement from the board.

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IPL 2020: Confusion Over Start Date Deepens

The BCCI President Sourav Ganguli confirmed that start date of the 13th edition of the cash-rich T20 league would be March 29 and that there would be fewer double-headers this season. But IPL start could be delayed a little.

Confusion over IPL start date

The International Cricket Council (ICC) is going to conduct its board meeting on March 29 in Dubai. It is the date when IPL will take off in India. BCCI tried to convince ICC shit its board meeting as both are big events and their dates are clashing. But ICC turned down the request of shifting its board meeting.

The problem with BCCI is that many of is members would be busy attending the important board meeting on the start date of the IPL. So, BCCI is left with no option other than to delay IPL matches.

ICC made a case

International Cricket Council will hold a series of meetings from March 27-29 and the dates for these meetings had been fixed in August 2019. Also, the concerned persons were informed about the meetings in advance. Since preparations have been made, there is little chances of ICC accepting BCCI’s request of change of dates.

Options for BCCI

Sources told that ICC dates were always announced in advance so no ground for changing dates now. BCCI has also withheld schedule of the tournament that is expected to start on March 29 in Guwahati. The ICC has even fixed dates for next conference. It will meet on July 17 and 18 this year in Cape Town.

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IPL 2020: Royal Challengers Bangalore To Get A New Name And Logo

Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) is going to change its name ahead of Indian Premier League 2020 season. Their social media activity gave a hint regarding change of name before start of IPL 2020. An important announcement regarding change of name could be made on February 16.

RCB social media activity

On Tuesday, RCB removed pictures from Twitter, Instagram and Facebook accounts. Also, it changed the name to Royal Challengers. The Hindustan Times reported that RCB could come up with a new name and logo and an announcement regarding the same could be made on February 16.

Reason for change of name

According to reports, a faction of RCB fans wants to change Bangalore as it is the old name of Silicon Valley. After some discussions, the RCB agreed to change Bangalore to Bengaluru before the start of IPL 2020.

RCB in IPL

By far, RCB has been the most favoured team in IPL due to a star-studded line-up that includes Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers but it has yet to receive its first IPL trophy. Its performance has been super but it failed to meet expectations of its fans in the last 12 IPL seasons. For IPL 2020, RCB has associated with Muthoot Corp as its title sponsor.

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IPL 2020: Mukesh Ambani Owned Mumbai Indians Team Bags INR 100 Crore Sponsorship For The Upcoming Tournament

Mumbai Indians (MI)bagged sponsorship contract worth INR 100 crore in two deals with Marriot Bonvoy and Astral Pipes. Owned by leading businessman Mukesh Ambani, Mumbai Indians is the four-time champions of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

MI confirms INR 100 crore dea

Spokesperson of Mumbai Indians confirmed that the team has managed to get the deal. With this deal, MI has become the first Indian sports franchise to clinch one billion deal. While not much info is revealed about the deal, the spokesperson only said that the deal with Marriot Bonvoy is worth INR 30 crore. The company would have its logo on the right side of the jersey. Astral Pipes would have their logo on the non-leading arm of the jersey.

Marriot Bonvoy has earlier bean associated with Manchester United, Formula One, Bayern Munich, NFL and the NBA but it is for the first time that the brand is investing on an Indian sports franchise.

It is the consistence performance of MI that keeps the team on top of the chart for the fourth consecutive season, according to the findings of Duff & Phelps.

Last year, MI got three-year sponsorship worth INR 75 crore from Samsung. Other sponsors of the team were Colors (back of jersey), Reliance Jio (lead arm), Sharp (back of helmet), Usha International (front of the helmet), Burger King and William Lawson (trouser).

Factors helping Mumbai Indians in their cause

• Four-time IPL champions
• Mukesh Ambani owned high-profile team
• Being in the financial capital keeps them in limelight

Mumbai Indians would start their campaign in the leadership of Captain Rohit Sharma. They will play their first match against Chennai Read the rest

IPL 2020 Begins On March 29 And Final On May 24 With No-Double Headers

The start date of IPL 2020 is fixed on March 29 and the final would be played on May 24. This time, IPL got an extended window for more entertainment. It would be 57 days of cricket with no double-headers this time.

IPL 2020 edition

Starting from March 24 to May 24, this season of the IPL is going to be lengthier by 12 days. Earlier IPL tournaments used to be up to 45 days but this time, the tournament is extended to 57 days.

IPL 2020 match timings

During previous seasons, it was noticed that matches started at 8 pm and went well past midnight. But this time, the games would start at 7:30 pm. The hosts felt that going back home a midnight was quite an issue for the audiences. But hosts have another issue with an early start. It is difficult for audiences living in metro cities to reach stadiums after leaving from office at 6 pm.

No-double headers in IPL 2020

Another important thing about IPL 2020 is that there would be no double-headers this time. The hosts received a lukewarm response today matches last season. This time, they want to make sure that the audiences enjoy cricket to the full and the TRP remains on top.

The extended window provided to IPL 2020 is to accommodate single matches. With 57 days of cricket, the hosts can easily plan the game. Last year, franchises had a problem with empty stands. Outdoing with double-headers would solve that problem.

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