CPL 2021: Organisers tweak schedule to avoid clash with remainder of IPL in UAE
Jun 19, 2021
St John's [Antigua], June 19 : The 2021 Caribbean Premier League (CPL) will conclude on September 15, four days before its scheduled final, to allow the Caribbean players to participate in the remaining games of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), starting September 19.
ANI had earlier reported that the first game on resumption of IPL will be played on September 19 while the final will take place on October 15. The cash-rich league was suspended in May first week after several COVID-19 cases were reported in the bio-bubble.
According to a report in ESPNcricinfo, the CPL will take place in St Kitts & Nevis between August 26 and September 15.
The showpiece event was scheduled to kick off on August 28, but the Cricket West Indies (CWI) tweaked the timetable after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) began talks with the CWI.
"Both IPL and CPL are important to CWI, to our cricketers and to fans," ESPNcricinfo quoted Ricky Skerritt, the CWI President as saying.
"CWI's role was to facilitate arrangements for a non-overlapping and smooth transition from one tournament to the next. Cricket administrators must collaborate if cricket is to survive the risks and costs of COVID-19," he added.
This year the tournament will take place in St Kitts & Nevis with all 33 matches being played at Warner Park. This follows on from the successful staging of CPL in Trinidad & Tobago in 2020.
Meanwhile, IPL franchises are also confident that the BCCI will engage in positive discussions with all the foreign boards and make players available for the remaining games.
"What we were made aware after the BCCI SGM is that the board will be speaking to the foreign boards and check on the availability of the foreign cricketers. We are confident that the BCCI will find the best possible solution and honestly it is a matter of the BCCI officials speaking to the respective board officials, so we should wait to hear from the board on this.
"Yes, if we do end up missing some of the foreign stars, that is an area which would need some attention when it comes to picking replacements as the foreign players are also integral to the teams. Team balance can go for a toss, so keeping fingers crossed on that one," a franchise official told ANI in May.
