IPL suspended at last
THE Indian Premier League (IPL), the biggest cash cow in world cricket, has finally been suspended amid an escalation in India-Pakistan hostilities. The decision was taken hours after Thursday’s match in Dharamsala was called off midway following air raid alerts in neighbouring cities of Jammu and Pathankot. It’s unpardonable that the match was allowed to begin in the first place, considering the increasingly volatile situation after the launch of Operation Sindoor. The security of everyone who was present there — players, officials, spectators, etc — was brazenly compromised. It was a huge lapse for which the IPL organisers and the local administration owe an explanation. A floodlit stadium with thousands inside could have been an ideal target for Pakistani drones; it’s hard to imagine the scale of the tragedy that could have happened. Moreover, the evacuation led to chaos outside the stadium, with blinding car lights making a mockery of the blackout.
War clouds were looming large after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, but it remained business as usual in the IPL, which is organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) — one of the richest sports boards in the world. Matches continued to be held with trademark fanfare in packed stadiums, disregarding not only the pan-India anger and grief over the massacre but also the border tensions that were worsening by the day.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time that the BCCI has allowed commercial interests to override safety concerns for as long as possible. In 2021, IPL matches continued for four weeks even as cases of Covid-19 infections and deaths rose alarmingly across the country in April. It was decided to postpone the tournament only in the first week of May after several players and support staff tested positive for coronavirus. Sport is one of the most popular modes of entertainment in India and abroad, but it is insensitive and criminally negligent to organise matches when an armed conflict or a pandemic is raging. Accountability should be fixed in order to prevent a repeat of such recklessness.
