Sri Lanka hopeful of hosting inaugural T20 League in August despite Covid-19 situation

Sri Lanka Cricket is optimistic of conducting its inaugural T20 league from August Eight to 22 despite the federal government’s resolution to postpone the reopening of the nation’s worldwide airport until August 1 as a result of COVID-19 pandemic.

Sri Lanka Cricket has received the inexperienced sign from the sports activities ministry to host the match, however the Lanka Premier League’s destiny will depend on the federal government’s resolution to open the nation’s borders for international arrivals. “We’re hoping to speak to His Excellency (President Gotabaya Rajapaksa) and see if we can come to a decision,” SLC CEO Ashley de Silva was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

“Sri Lanka has done very well in containing the coronavirus as opposed to other countries in the region, and as such we have had a lot of interest from foreign players in taking part in the tournament.

Sri Lanka has just over 2000 coronavirus cases out of which more than 1700 have recovered. Five teams are expected to take part in the franchise-based LPL, which was first conceived by Sri Lanka Cricket in 2018 but failed to see the light of the day till now.

The cricket body is still in the process of accepting tenders for franchise ownerships. The cricketers will picked through an auction process. Each team is allowed to pick a maximum of six foreign players in the squad with only four in the final eleven.

The length of the tournament will depend on the now-postponed India’s tour of Sri Lanka as both the cricket boards are exploring options of fulfilling their commitments in August. “At the second we’re taking a look at 23 video games, but when India agrees to play then it’s going to most likely come all the way down to 13,” de Silva said.