The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has invited all eight franchises of Indian Premier League for a governing council meeting regarding the future of the tournament this year amidst the coronavirus outbreak.
The meeting is set to be held on Saturday, March 14 where the decision will be taken regarding the big issue. Amidst coronavirus fears, the board has mainly two options -either postpone IPL or play it behind closed doors, like many other sporting events are happening across the globe.
The 13th edition of the mega tournament is scheduled to start from March 29, with defending champions Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings clashing at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai for the opening fixture.
When asked whether franchises have been invited, sources within the BCCI told ANI: "Yes, we have invited them for the meeting".
The Central government has suspended all visas to India till April 15 as part of measures to contain the spread of the pandemic which has put IPL's scheduling in doubt.
The Sports Ministry has also asked all National Sports Federations (NSFs), including the BCCI to follow the Health Ministry's guidelines.
As per the guidelines issued, it has been asked to avoid large public gatherings.
Due to the visa regulation, sources within the IPL's governing council said that the foreign players would not be available for the tournament.
"Yes, foreign players will not be available. We will discuss this and other issues at our governing council meeting scheduled for March 14," a source in IPL governing council had told ANI.
On Thursday, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said that the IPL should happen behind closed doors or it should be postponed.
World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday had declared the coronavirus outbreak a 'pandemic' and expressed deep concern.
The coronavirus disease was first detected in Wuhan in China's Hubei province, in late December, and has since spread worldwide.
More than 127,000 people have been infected with COVID-19, with over 4,700 having died and 68,000 recovered.
(With ANI Inputs)
