Decision day looms for Indian Premier League destination

UAE in the running to host at least part of the Twenty20 tournament in April and May.

Kolkata Knight Riders batsman Manvinder Bisla plays a shot as Chennai Super Kings captain and wicket-keeper MS Dhoni. Manjunath Kiran / AFP / May 27, 2012

ABU DHABI // The UAE will discover this week, possibly as early as Monday, whether it will be staging some of the Indian Premier League (IPL) through April and May.

The seventh season of cricket’s most glamorous and lucrative Twenty20 league is unlikely to be staged in its entirety in India, because of general elections taking place in the country.

India’s Election Commission announced dates for a nine-phase polling schedule last week, beginning April 7 and ending on May 12.

Those dates clash with the estimated schedule and duration of the IPL and states will not be able to provide enough security staff for matches, since they will be needed to oversee the polls.

The last time India went to the polls, in 2009, the IPL was moved at short notice to South Africa, where it was a success.

This time, however, the UAE is in the running as a viable option to host at least a portion of the season, along with South Africa and Bangladesh. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was expected to make a final decision after the election dates were announced, but it continues to hold discussions with the Indian Home Ministry.

The board sent the ministry a new set of dates for when the league can be staged in an effort to stage as many matches as possible in India, potentially from the first week of May, by which time the polls will have ended in a number of states.

“No decision yet,” the IPL’s chief executive officer Sundar Raman told The National.

“[We are] working through all options. Decision should be made early [this] week. All venues in consideration.”

It could be that up to two-thirds of the tournament is held outside India, which might mean that South Africa is a more attractive option, given that it has previously staged an entire season.

But at least some of the league’s franchises have expressed a preference for the UAE to host some games, citing the country’s sizable subcontinent expatriate population as a readymade source of ticket revenues. The country’s proximity to India is also an added advantage.

Not only does that make it logistically and financially feasible for the teams themselves, it also allows for fans to travel to the UAE for weekend games.

“We have told BCCI that the UAE is better-suited,” the chief executive officer of the Kolkatta Knight Riders, Venky Mysore, told The Economic Times. “We have to look at it from a sponsor standpoint as well.”

That report cited at least two other franchise officials stating their preference for the UAE, as well as a BCCI official, who was confident the first part of the tournament would be held in the UAE.