Reports | Safety measures in place but IPL 2020 unlikely to be behind closed doors

The UN has admitted that we may well have a pandemic on our hands. The Serie A — Italy’s No.1 football league — has been suspended. But even as the number of people tested positive for COVID 19 touches 50 in India, there seems to be no slowing down for the IPL, which is scheduled to begin on March 29. There have been suggestions about shifting the tournament to within closed doors as the matches will be available on television as well as streaming platforms like Hotstar, but a BCCI official has ruled out the option.

"Did you guys check out what was the attendance during the ATK vs Bengaluru FC Indian Super League play-off game? It was close to 60,000 (50,000 plus). So why would we bar public viewing?" the official questioned, reported PTI.

India’s cricket-crazy fans love getting up close and personal with star cricketers from the franchises they follow. This, however, might not be possible during the course of the 2020 edition, as teams will be issued a health advisory preventing players from attending large gatherings. To what extent the eight franchises will curtail fan engagement activities, which are part of their sponsorship commitments, is still not clear.