RCB will be ready if IPL 2020 is held, asserts Mike Hesson
Royal Challengers Bangalore director of cricket Mike Hesson, who is hopeful of the IPL 2020 being held, has affirmed that the franchise will be fully prepared if the league indeed goes ahead. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s season of the cash-rich event was postponed indefinitely.
As the coronavirus-induced pandemic hit the world, the Indian Premier League was indefinitely postponed by the BCCI, with the Indian government implementing a nationwide lockdown. The thirteenth edition of the IPL was originally scheduled to begin on March 29, but now the fate of the T20 league remains uncertain. Meanwhile, Royal Challengers Bangalore’s director of cricket operations Mike Hesson, revealed that he is still hopeful of the IPL taking place this year and attested that his franchise will be ready when it happens.
“We’re still really hopeful that things will evolve and there will be an IPL this year and if it happens, then I can assure you that RCB will be ready,” Hesson said on Star Sports show ‘Cricket Connected’.
“We were obviously a week away from coming into camp, like everybody else, feeling well advanced in terms of our planning. Quite rightfully, everything has been put on hold and everybody is going about their work. There are obviously other priorities at the moment that people are focussing on,” he added.
After an unsuccessful 2018 and 2019, where they failed to make the top four, RCB opted for a coaching and support staff overhaul, appointing Australia's Simon Katich as the head coach, while naming former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson as the club's Director of Cricket.