Road Safety World Series matches behind closed doors amid Coronavirus outbreak

In the latest development, the Unacademy Road Safety World Series matches will be played behind closed doors in DY Patil Stadium in the wake of Coronavirus outbreak. This decision has been taken to protect the health and safety of the players, staff, and spectators. The official press release stated that the management is monitoring the situation closely and refund for online, offline bookings of match tickets to be initiated soon.

Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 and the escalating number of cases in Maharashtra, the organising committee unanimously agreed that the third leg of the Series, which was scheduled to be held in Pune from March 14 to 20, 2020, be relocated to DY Patil Stadium and played behind closed doors along with the remaining games at the same venue and the final.

"As a consequence of the ongoing health emergency in the country, all stakeholders of the 'Unacademy Road Safety World Series' — the Professional Management Group (PMG), Viacom18, BookMyShow, DNA Entertainment and Majestic Legends Sports Pvt. Ltd. — have decided that all remaining matches of the 'Unacademy Road Safety World Series' will be played behind closed doors at the DY Patil Stadium starting March 13 when South Africa Legends take on Sri Lanka Legends in a revised schedule. This decision has been taken as the most responsible course of action, to protect the health and safety of the players, staff and spectators," read the press release.

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The Sports Ministry has asked all national federations, including the BCCI, to follow the Health Ministry's advisory and avoid large gatherings in sports events keeping in mind the novel coronavirus pandemic. Sports Secretary Radhey Shyam Julaniya told PTI that sporting events in the country can continue but without the presence of a large number of people. "We have asked all the NSFs, including the BCCI, to follow the Health Ministry's latest advisory, which says public gatherings should be avoided in all events, including sporting activities," Julaniya told PTI. "The sporting events can go on but the advisory needs to be followed," he added. 

The government on Wednesday suspended all visas, barring a few categories like diplomatic and employment, in an attempt to prevent the spread of coronavirus as cases across India rose to 60.  The outbreak, declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday, has led to more than 4,000 deaths globally.  The government's decision to suspend most visas until April 15, which comes into effect on Friday, has put a big question mark on the sporting events in India. 

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