The BCCI (Board Control of Cricket for India) has approached the Cricket Club of India (CCI) with an offer to host next year’s opening ceremony for the IPL (Indian Premier League).
In 2018 the CoA (Committee of Administrators) organised opening ceremonies at all the venues but, this year declined to do so, and used the money save to donate to the families of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) killed in the Pulwana attack in February of this year.
Instead, the 2019 IPL kicked off with a low key token affair featuring entertainers before the opening match between the Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
This year it is likely the opening ceremony will not take place on the same day as the first match of the tournament.
Meanwhile, in a separate development, the Barasapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati is likely to host IPL matches next season.
Reports suggest that the stadium could host three Rajasthan Royals matches in the 20120 season, and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are also considering using the stadium as a venue for home matches. ‘
Elsewhere, the newly elected President of the BCC Sourav Ganguly had his first meeting with India’s captain Virat Kohli on Thursday, and one of the matters that they discussed was Day-Night Test matches.
Ganguly is very much in favour of India starting to play Day-Night matches as a way of attracting more spectators into grounds. Previously India have opposed the idea, but the former test captain thinks that this is an outdated stance, and India needs to move with the times, with Australia, New Zealand and Pakistan among the test playing nations that have already begun experimenting with the format.
One of the problems why India has previously opposed the idea is because of fears that the SG Pink cricket ball might not meet the required standard in home conditions. Kohli himself is not keen on the idea of Day-Night matches but has been urged to think about it by Ganguly, who also suggested that one of the forthcoming test matches against Bangladesh might be a suitable opportunity to trial the idea, although the visitors will need to agree as well.
