IPL 2024 second-half will likely be played in the UAE due to the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in India. Notbaly, BCCI has announced schedule for the first 21 matches only, and are awaiting the declaration of election dates by Election Commission of India.
The IPL 2024 is set to start with defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Chepauk in Chennai on Friday, March 2022. The 21st match will be played between Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and Gujarat Titans (GT) in Lucknow on April 7.
BCCI is awaiting the announcement of the phase-wise general elections dates from the Election Commission of India. The announcement of the remaining schedule which will also confirm the venues, will be made one ECI declares the election dates.
“The Election Commission of India will announce the election schedule on Saturday at 3 pm. After that, the BCCI will decide whether should be moved to Dubai. Currently, a few top BCCI officials are in Dubai to explore the possibility of organizing the second half of the IPL in Dubai,” TOI quoted a BCCI official as saying.
Recently, BCCI secretary Arun Dhumal expressed confidence that BCCI would be able to host all the IPL 2024 matches in India. He had said that conditions would be very hot in the UAE.
“Even in 2019, the IPL was played in a home-away format in its entirety despite the General Elections. This time, too, once the dates for the elections are out and we have clarity about the dates and the phases for the polls, we can work out the next phase of the IPL,” Dhumal had told Sportstar.
“Given the time we have in April and May, it would be very difficult to take this tournament to any other country. If you talk about Dubai, it would be very hot around that time, and other teams have their bilateral commitments.
“Given the number of matches we have, I don’t think not many venues can take this load in such a short time. The team at BCCI is best equipped and we will take it as a challenge and have a good tournament,” he added.
Reports had earlier suggested that the BCCI would avoid scheduling matches in regions hosting the Lok Sabha elections. For example, matches at Eden Gardens would be avoided if Lok Sabha elections dates in West Bengal were nearing.
The IPL 2009 was entirely taken to South Africa due to the general elections. During the 2014 elections, the first phase of IPL was played in the UAE. However, all the matches were held in India during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Utkarsh Singh Mykhel
source: mykhel.com