Ganguly does not foresee cricketing activity in India in the near future
The president of the BCCI has reiterated the stance of the cricket governing body in India that safety of human lives is of paramount importance. The COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) pandemic which has halted almost all sporting activity across the globe, had forced the hand of the IPL governing council to also postpone the tournament till further notice.
There have, however been talks of the Bundesliga, the top-tier German football league resuming behind closed doors. With India following a lockdown protocol until 3rd May 2020, the former Indian captain and the current President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Sourav Ganguly was against the idea of adopting the approach for cricket in India
“The social reality of Germany and India are different, there will be no cricket in India in the near future," Ganguly told TOI on Tuesday. "There are too many ifs and buts involved. More importantly, I don't believe in sport when there is a risk to human life.”
The strong position taken by Ganguly comes on the back of various organisations and individuals from the cricketing fraternity taking opposite sides of the debate as to whether cricket should resume behind closed doors or not. Talking from the economic perspective of hosting the ICC World T20, Cricket Australia chief executive Kevin Roberts said on Tuesday, "We might not generate financial returns that are as significant as the international cricket season. But the bigger returns from the broadcast rights around the event that are generated by the ICC are very important to all of our counterparts around the cricket world.”
Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh countered the argument for holding the event, saying "When IPL teams travel, there's a huge crowd at the airports, hotels, outside the stadium. How are you going to stop them if you are looking to maintain social distancing? There should be no top-flight cricket till there is a vaccine for COVID-19.”
CEO of Chennai Superkings, KS Viswanathan provided a similar opinion on the matter, “Did you see the crowds during our practice sessions at Chepauk when we said we can't allow people inside the ground. Lives are at stake, you can't control Indian crowds that easily. Yes, there will be financial losses, but we have to live with it”.
However, Indian cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar offered a more creative solution to the situation, given Australia and India are scheduled to host the event in 2020 and 2021 respectively. “As we all know, Australia has barred foreigners from entering the country till September 30. The tournament starts in mid-October so it is looking difficult at the moment. Next year the T20 World Cup is scheduled in India. If India and Australia come to an agreement and the COVID-19 curve in India flattens out, they can swap. It can be held in India this October-November and next year in Australia.”
Despite varying takes on the matter, it looks like we will have to wait a while before cricket returns to India in any form.
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