IPL 2020: ‘My first flight in 6 months’: BCCI President Sourav Ganguly shares pictures of his visit to Dubai

XtraTime Web Desk: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President on Wednesday reached Dubai to oversee the preparations of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2020). With just 9 days to go before the cash rich league gets underway on September 19, the Board President will be in the UAE to look into how the preparations are underway. He shared a couple of pictures before boarding the chartered flight from Kolkata. While sharing the pictures on his instagram handle, Ganguly wrote, “My first flight in 6 months for IPL. Crazy life changes”.

The BCCI President has been in Kolkata since the lockdown started in March. He has been doing the official works of the Baord from his residence in Behala and has been attending important meetings of ICC & BCCI by video conferencing or tele-conferencing.

The 13th edition of the IPL will start from September 19 with reigning champions Mumbai Indians taking on Chennai Super Kings at Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. The 53 days tournament will be played across three venues in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.

The IPL this season is being held differently compared to the previous seasons with no opening ceremony. IPL over the years has witnessed grand opening ceremony with live performances by big Bollywood stars and fireworks. But the BCCI has decided against having such an opening ceremony. The BCCI has officially mailed the state associations that there will be no invitations to attend the IPL matches during the first few weeks
There will be regular COVID-19 tests. Teams and everyone else involved with the matches will be in a bio-secured bubble covering the hotels, playing and practice arenas. Nobody will be allowed to leave or enter the bio-bubble without fulfilling conditions laid by the BCCI in accordance with rules in the UAE.