Up to 30 IPL matches could be played in the UAE if the Gulf nation is chosen to co-host this year’s edition, Sport360° understands.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and IPL officials, are expected to announce this week whether UAE or Bangladesh will co-host the tournament with India unable to stage the whole competition due to the general elections.
If the popular T20 tournament does come to the UAE, matches will be played in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah, said a top UAE cricket official, who did not wish to be named.
The nine-phase polling schedule will run from April 7 to May 12, and with it clashing with the seventh edition of the tournament, the Indian government are unable to provide security for both.
This means some of the matches will have to be played in another country, with the latter part of the tournament returning to India once the elections are concluded.
IPL chairman Ranjib Biswal declared on Monday that they are waiting from clearance from India’s home ministry before finalising the itinerary.
“We will announce the detailed itinerary of IPL after receiving the clearance from the union home ministry on the issue of security during the matches in India. We are having a series of meetings with home ministry officials and will get a clearer picture in another three days time,” Biswal said.
If the competition is held in the UAE, it will be the second major tournament in the country this year after the successful hosting of the Under-19 World Cup last month.
This year’s IPL, which will see the likes of Chris Gayle and Kevin Pietersen in action, will have 60 games in total.
