Bangladesh Cricket Board announced on Sunday that Dhaka Premier League 2019-20 will start again from May 31, 2021. BCB earlier decided to start the tournament from May 6, but it was postponed due to the devastating second wave of coronavirus pandemic.
The 2019-20 season of the DPL was halted on March 19 last year after just one completed round of matches because of the guidelines laid down by the government to break the chain of infection.
Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis, a BCB wing, which has been trusted with the responsibility to host a Dhaka-club based tournament, claimed that the competition is now completely revamped. Instead of the usual 50 over format, the league will now be played in T20 format. The change in format hardly come as a surprise as logistically, and from the players’ point of view, T20 cricket is much more practical during these tough times.
“The CCDM with the support of the BCB plan to organize the DPL from May 31. As decided earlier it will be a T20 event. Considering the busy international schedule and the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, we believe that T20 is the ideal format for the 2019-20 League,”
CCDM chairman Kazi Inam Ahmed was quoted in a statement issued by BCB on May 2.
Inam added that the BCB President has given a clear direction on the importance of players’ safety during these extremely tough times. The board has successfully completed two tournaments this season and has hosted the West Indies in Bangladesh as well.
He stated that the board will draw from these learnings and make plans for the Bangabandhu DPL accordingly.
“We know what this league means to the players and clubs and appreciate their support during the planning stage,”
Inam added.
The smooth conduct of such events will encourage more nations to organize sporting events as the pandemic has severely impacted the livelihood of many domestic players across the world.
