Mumbai Indians urges fans to 'keep batting from crease' till May 3 as PM extends lockdown

Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended the Coronavirus lockdown in the country till May 3, Indian Premier League franchise Mumbai Indians motivated citizens to stay indoors to combat the pandemic. Taking to Twitter, the franchise appreciated the efforts of citizens across the country till now and then urged everyone to 'keep batting from their crease till May 3.'

PM Modi extends lockdown

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing the nation on Tuesday, announced that the lockdown imposed in the country will be extended till May 3. He said, "CMs of every State suggested that the lockdown should be increased. Many states have already decided to increase lockdown. Keeping all the suggestions in mind, it has been decided that the lockdown in India will now have to be extended till May 3."

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In his televised address, PM Modi said, "Till 20th April, all districts, localities, states will be closely monitored, as to how strictly they are implementing norms. States which will not let hotspots increase, they could be allowed to let some important activities resume, but with certain conditions."

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BCCI rules out IPL possibility

Meanwhile, the BCCI has ruled out the possibility of any talks on cricket and IPL related matters in the upcoming future. "We are looking to see the country bounce back first and then think about discussing cricket and IPL. There will be no cricket related meeting or talks before the country stands on its feet. It is a war-like situation and we want to back our country. BCCI wants to forget about cricket for a while," a top BCCI official said on condition of anonymity.

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"There is no truth in different new proposed dates coming up on different platforms. There is no basis of these news. There is no plans of organizing IPL between September and November as BCCI is not aware of the future of Australia, England, West Indies, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, and South African cricketers and there is no clarity on when the travel bans will be lifted. Moreover, as coronavirus hot spots are changing every day and new places are spotted, there is no clarity on the venues to organize cricket," he added.

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