IPL franchise owners vow to adhere to Health Min's directives, fight COVID-19 together

The owners of the franchises of the Indian Premier League and the BCCI members met on Saturday, a day after the IPL was postponed to April 15 in the wake of the threat from the novel coronavirus. The BCCI & the IPL chairman adhered to the directives issued by the Health Ministry which has asked the NSFs, including BCCI, to avoid organizing sporting events where there is large public gathering and conduct games behind closed doors if the games were unavoidable. With major sporting leagues around the world being called off and postponed, the Indian Premier League too suffers the same fate. 

READ | Surinder Khanna Hails Decision To Postpone IPL, Says Safety Of The People Is Important

Franchise owners vow to fight COVID-19 together

Franchise owners, however, hailed the decision and have vowed to join hands to closely monitor the situation and combat the COVID-19 virus. Kolkata Knight Riders owner Shah Rukh Khan took to Twitter to give an insight into what happened in the meeting between franchise owners and the BCCI and said that the safety of the spectators and the players was their first priority and vowed to adhere to the directives issued by the Health Ministry. Shah Rukh Khan hoped that the virus would subside soon and that the BCCI would keep a close watch on the situation along with the franchise owners. 

READ |  Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) Postpones All Domestic Games Amid COVID-19 Fear

READ | Sanjay Manjrekar Removed From BCCI's Commentary Panel: Report

IPL postponed

A statement was released on Friday afternoon which quoted BCCI Secretary Jay Shah and stated, "The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to suspend IPL 2020 till 15th April 2020, as a precautionary measure against the ongoing novel Coronavirus situation." The BCCI is concerned and sensitive about all its stakeholders, and public health in general, and it is taking all necessary steps to ensure that, all people related to IPL including fans have a safe cricketing experience. The cricket body will work closely with the Government of India along with the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and all other relevant Central and State Government departments in this regard.

READ | Squadron Leader Shikha Pandey Felicitated For Her Heroics For India In The T20 World Cup