Former England batter Dawid Malan reckons that the remainder of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season will resume in September if the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are unable to get the competition underway in a week’s time. The 18th edition of the T20 tournament was suspended for one week on Friday due to the rising tensions between India and Pakistan.
The BCCI’s official statement clearly stated that the country’s national interest comes first, and the board does not see fit for the tournament to go ahead right now, considering the war-like situation on the borders.
The overseas players of all ten IPL franchises have already begun travelling back home and one awaits further clarity from the BCCI regarding the resumption of the tournament.
Malan reckons that if the BCCI are unable to get the competition up and running in a week’s time in India or Sri Lanka, then only the September window can be utilised because of India’s upcoming five-match Test series against England, beginning June 20, 2025.
“If it doesn’t happen in India or Sri Lanka in a week’s time like that, I suppose they will start in September. They got a massive Test series coming up against England in a few months’ time, and the IPL has to finish before that or start after that; logistically, it is quite a headache for the organisers,” Dawid Malan said, speaking on Al Arabiya.
“I guess they have to wait and see how next week plays out in terms of the safety concerns of players and people of both countries,” he added.
‘South Africa cannot be an option’
Malan also said that if the tournament has to resume in a week’s time, the only options for venues are India, UAE, and Sri Lanka. He said South Africa cannot be considered because of the weather.
The IPL was shifted completely to South Africa in 2009 owing to general elections in India. The IPL was suspended midway in 2021 as well owing to the Covid-19 pandemic and the remainder of the tournament was then played in the UAE in September.
“It’s not the first time it has happened with the IPL, not in terms of severity, that has been going on between the two countries, but COVID hit back in 2020/2021, and they moved the IPL to the UAE midway through,” said Malan.
“There are options they have played in South Africa before. Realistically, if they have to start in a week, they have to do it in India or the UAE. South Africa wouldn’t be an option, considering it will be winter there,” he added.
On Thursday, just hours after the IPL suspension, former England captain Michael Vaughan had said that the remainder of the IPL 2025 season can be finished off in the UK. “I wonder if it’s possible to finish the IPL in the UK .. We have all the venues and the Indian players can then stay on for the Test series .. Just a thought?,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter).