NEW DELHI: The Indian cricket board may hold part of the Indian Premier League in Singapore or Malaysia to avoid a clash with next year’s general elections. The board is also considering moving the league to South Africa, as it did during the 2009 elections, but that has met with opposition from the new IPL title sponsor PepsiCo, which does not have a significant presence in that country, said a source close to the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI), who didn’t want to be identified.
Ranjib Biswal, who recently replaced Rajeev Shukla as IPL chairman, confirmed that Singapore and Malaysia alongside South Africa are being considered as alternative venues.
“We are keen to hold the tournament in India but if the circumstances are such that we can’t, then we will look at holding a part of it in either Singapore or Malaysia,” he said. Biswal and his team are in the process of seeking the government’s advice and talking to all stakeholders. A decision is likely by the end of December.
Mahinda Vallipuram, deputy president of the Malaysian Cricket Association, and Prakash Vijaykumar, chief executive officer of the Singapore Cricket Association, said they are yet to hear from the Indian cricket board about this. APepsiCo spokesperson said, “We have not received any notification from BCCI regarding moving of IPL matches out of the country. As a policy, we do not comment on speculation.”
Over 10,000 players and staff had to fly to South Africa within a few weeks. The economy of that country got a welcome boost, given the gloomy economy scenario at the time.
According to estimates, the tournament injected $200-250 million into the South African economy and also brought in thousands of tourists. “If a few games in the next season are moved to Singapore or Malaysia, tourism there would get a huge boost from India as well as other cricketing nations. It will also be great for the growth of cricket in these nations,” said the person cited above.
Since the next season of IPL will be shorter with only 60 games compared to 76 in season six, the cricket board is also considering the option of starting the tournament after the elections are over. “We are trying to sort it out. All options are being considered,” said Biswal.
Title sponsor PepsiCo, however, isn’t too happy with the reduction in the number of games in season seven that was necessitated by the exit of the Sahara-owned Pune franchise.
A person close to PepsiCo who did not wish to be named said the reduction in the number of matches was a cause for concern for the company as it may not be able to monetise its investments in the league to the fullest. PepsiCo declined to comment on this issue.
The company recently won the title sponsorship rights for the league, committing to pay close to .`400 crore over the next five years.
Some IPL-7 matches may be played on foreign grounds
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