IPL 2014: South Africa, Bangladesh and UAE picked as alternative venues
The seventh edition of the Indian Premier League could be moved out of India due to the federal elections that may possibly coincide with the tournament.
Owing to federal elections in India, the Governing Council of the Indian Premier League is considering moving the 2014 edition of the tournament out of the country, with South Africa, Bangladesh and UAE considered as alternatives.
The Governing Council is mulling over the decision and is waiting for the dates of the election so as to plan a course of action after the player auctions that are scheduled to take place on February 12th and 13th in Bangalore.
Three venues -- South Africa, Bangladesh and UAE -- have come up as options for being alternative hosts. The BCCI is also hoping to host the important ties like the play-offs in India. According to a report on ESPNCricinfo, a BCCI official was quoted as saying, "If the elections are held in April, then the first half will be played abroad. But if the elections are in May, we may play the initial games in India."
The report went on to claim that of the three choices, South Africa is most-likely to host as UAE is considered not to be 'spectator friendly', while there could be logistical issues with hosting the tournament in Bangladesh as it would have already hosted the Asia Cup and the World T20 before that.
Should the IPL shift to another country, it will be the second time that the tournament will be staged outside India. The 2009 edition, which was also the second season of the Indian Premier League was held in South Africa after the dates clashed with federal elections and the Indian government did not agree to providing security to the cricketers.