|
MUMBAI:
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is on as per schedule but
with a jugglery of dates, after assurances came from both
the IPL organisers and the Home Minister P Chidambaram.
"I
did not say that IPL should be postponed. I am trying to help
them and will help IPL hold the matches. Some rescheduling
seems unavoidable," Chidambaram said.
The
multi-billion dollar Twenty20 tournament had come under a
cloud following the announcement of the Lok Sabha polls and
the Lahore attack on Sri Lankan players that mimicked the
Mumbai terror strike.
As
part of the tweaked schedule, the opening match of the IPL
will be held in Mumbai and not Jaipur. The IPL will also not
hold matches in any city on the day of counting of votes.
"We
are making a new schedule for IPL matches. It is a cumbersome
process because there are blackout dates in several cities
due to elections," IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi said Friday,
while assuring that the IPL would not be postponed.
IPL
organizers have already offered a revised match schedule to
the Home Ministry. The rescheduled proposal will also be discussed
with the IPL host states and the Election Commission.
Meanwhile,
the IPL organizers have started hunting for venues other than
the fixed nine cities to reallocate the tournament.
"There
are 14 cities available to us right now, of which we will
have to choose eight," Modi said.
Read
Also:
IPL
Season II: Pietersen, Flintoff bought for record price
112
overseas players sign up for IPL II auction
|
