IPL to release new schedule by CricketArchive Staff Reporter

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Event:

Indian Premier League 2009

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DateLine: 6th March 2009

 

Indian Premier League commissioner Lalit Modi on Friday said that no IPL matches would be played on the day of counting of votes for the Lok Sabha polls. The IPL governing council met in Mumbai on Friday morning to work out a revised schedule of the IPL. Sources say that IPL officials will be meeting home ministry officials at 5pm on Friday during which the schedule will be finalized.

 

According to the proposal submitted by the IPL to the home ministry, a match will be held 24 hours before polling day or 24 hours after polling day. Home ministry, however, says the matches can be held only 72 hours before polling or 72 hours after polling.

 

IPL is also looking at more venues like Indore, Nagpur, Rajkot, Vadodara, Cuttack, Ahmedabad and Vizag. With the IPL matches being spread to a number of cities, the city flavour will be missing. IPL sources say the league phase that was supposed to end on May 16, will now end on May 20. The final which is currently scheduled for May 24, will be held on the same date. Lalit Modi thanked the home ministry for promising adequate security for the IPL matches. Earlier in the day, he rubbished reports that the Indian Twenty20 extravaganza will move outside India.

 

The second edition of the tournament has come under a cloud of uncertainty in the wake of the deadly terror attack on Sri Lankan team in Lahore and the general elections in India which coincide with the league that starts April 10.

 

The IPL organisers had sent a fresh schedule to the home ministry on Thursday in the wake of security concerns about the Lok Sabha elections and the T20 tournament being held simultaneously.