The 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2020) is set to start in UAE from September 19. That is after it was postponed earlier due to the Coronavirus pandemic that has brought the sporting world to a standstill. Therefore for this IPL, we are going out of India and in the 53-day event, it will be filled with swashbuckling Twenty20 cricketing action with 10 doubleheaders for the crazy cricket fanatics all over the world.
On the days of doubleheaders, the first game will start from 3.30 PM (IST). The second game will commence later in the evening at 7.30 PM (IST). The matches will be played without spectators, behind closed doors. Three venues have been selected for the marquee franchise tournament. The venues that will get to host the IPL matches are Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
It will be difficult to witness cricket matches without spectators in and around the stadium. That is how it is now and with the cases increasing daily. One can only expect the game to be played with or without their passionate supporters.
IPL 2020 Will Be Without Some Key Talents Initially
However, the league was earlier scheduled in its more usual time in March but that was the time when the pandemic hindered sports and forced the committee members to postpone the cash-rich league. The COVID-19 brought the whole sporting scenario to a standstill postponing the Olympics and several other international tours and series. Therefore with the IPL starting from mid-September a lot of foreign players from England and Australia will miss the early exchanges of the tournament and teams will have to find a way to replace their superstars and simultaneously kicking it off with a bang.
Both England and Australia will go against each other in a limited-overs series consisting of three T20Is and as many ODIs, from September 4 to16. The T20Is will be played on September 4, 6 and 8 in Southampton followed by three ODIs on September 11, 13, and 16 in Manchester as well. The problem is the players can only join their respective teams only after they have completed their self-quarantine.
Chennai Super Kings will miss the likes of Josh Hazlewood and talented allrounder Sam Curran. It will be an early blow for MS Dhoni’s side. Delhi Capitals will be without some of their crucial players like Alex Carey, Jason Roy and Marcus Stoinis. Chris Woakes has pulled out of the tournament and the Capitals have replaced him with South Africa pacer Anreich Nortje.
The Players Who Will Be Further Missing
Chris Jordan and Glenn Maxxwell will be unavailable for the Kings XI Punjab. The Kolkata Knight Riders will miss the like of Tom Banton, Eoin Morgan and Pat Cummins. Same will be the case for Sunrisers Hyderabad. They will miss crucial players in David Warner, Jonny Bairstow and Mitchell Marsh.
Rajasthan Royals are the franchise which will face the biggest hit because of the player unavailability. Six of their foreign players will be absent. Starting from Andrew Tye, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Steve Smith and Tom Curran. Royal Challengers Bangalore will miss four in Josh Philippe, Aaron Finch, Moeen Ali and Kane Richardson. Mumbai Indians are the only franchise who will not even miss a single player during the first few matches.
