IPL 2020: Franchises call-off pre-tournament training camps
What's the story
In a recent update, all the eight IPL franchises have scraped their respective pre-tournament camps until further notice. Royal Challengers Bangalore on Monday postponed their training camp, which was scheduled to begin from March 21, in the wake of the novel coronavirus. Chennai Super Kings too, on March 14, decided to cut-short their training sessions, owing to the crisis. Here is more.
Quote
RCB suspended the camps as a preventive measure
"Keeping in mind the health and safety of everyone involved, the RCB Training Camp scheduled to start on the 21st of March has been deferred until further notice. We request everyone to follow the guidelines provided by the Health Ministry and stay safe," RCB tweeted.
Twitter Post
RCB made the announcement on Twitter
Keeping in mind the health and safety of everyone involved, the RCB Training Camp scheduled to start on the 21st of March has been deferred until further notice. We request everyone to follow the guidelines provided by the Health Ministry and stay safe. 🙏🏻#PlayBold pic.twitter.com/DTVog3x5mB
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) March 16, 2020
CSK
Chennai Super Kings cut-short their training camp on March 14
Earlier, training sessions of Chennai Super Kings were also suspended, owing to the coronavirus pandemic. Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, along with a bunch of other players. featured in the final session and left the city soon thereafter. In a video tweeted by CSK, Dhoni was seen greeting a number of officials on-field and several fans before leaving.
Twitter Post
MS Dhoni meets his fans before leaving
"It has become your home sir!" Keep whistling, as #Thala Dhoni bids a short adieu to #AnbuDen. 🦁💛 pic.twitter.com/XUx3Lw4cpH
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) March 14, 2020
Postponement
IPL 2020 was postponed from March 29 to April 15
The coronavirus outbreak led to the postponement of IPL from March 29 to April 15. Previously, it was stated that overseas players will only be available post April 15 as the Indian government imposed travel restrictions, except for a few official categories. It was also proposed that the IPL could be played behind closed doors to avoid mass gatherings.
Permission
Delhi Government had banned all sporting events
The franchise owners are hoping that some of the state governments, which have denied permission for hosting the IPL matches, will give a go-ahead in case the tournament commences on April 15. Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had earlier ruled out any possibility of hosting sporting events involving large gatherings in the national capital. This also included the Indian Premier League.