'Not a financial crisis:' Ganguly affirms BCCI has 'Plan B' to tackle Vivo's IPL ouster

Issuing his first response to BCCI's decision to suspend its sponsorship deal with China's Vivo for the 13th edition of the IPL, President Sourav Ganguly remarked that it is just a 'blip' and won't lead to a 'financial crisis.' Reportedly, Vivo had won IPL sponsorship rights from 2018 to 2022 for a whopping amount of Rs 2190 crore. However, with its ouster from the 2020 edition, BCCI President Ganguly has affirmed that the board always has a 'Plan B.'

Speaking at a webinar on Saturday, Ganguly said, "I wouldn’t call it as a financial crisis. It’s just a little bit of a blip. BCCI, it’s a very a strong foundation - the game, the players, the administrators in the past have made this game so strong that BCCI is able to handle all these blips.”Ganguly said the BCCI always has a 'Plan B' for these kind of situations."

The board needs to zero down a new sponsor swiftly as the 13th edition of the IPL nears after its indefinite postponement due to the Coronavirus pandemic. After the fallout with Vivo, other brands like Amazon, Unacademy and MyCircle11 are currently the front runners to crack a sponsorship deal. Amongst all potential bidders, Amazon is said to be leading the race while several other fantasy sports and educational platforms are also in the running for the IPL 2020. 

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BCCI snubs Vivo 

After facing severe backlash for continuing its sponsorship deal with IPL, the BCCI on Thursday announced the suspension of its partnership with Chinese smartphone manufacturing company Vivo for the 13th edition of the IPL. The Indian cricket board faced the wrath of citizens across social media platforms after it announced the continuation of the title sponsorship deal with the Chinese company. The decision came amid the anti-China sentiment across the country post the Galwan valley clash with China, where 20 Indian soldiers were martyred. 

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IPL 2020 moved to UAE

On August 2, BCCI received permission from the Indian government to hold the IPL in the UAE. The Governing Council which met on Sunday to chalk out the future course of the tournament has also decided to allow COVID-19 replacements in this year's tournament which will be held in the UAE. The replacement rule has been brought in the wake of the pandemic. The franchises have been allowed 24-player squads and will also be allowed to replace players in case they get unwell during the tournament. The tournament will begin on September 19 in the UAE with the final being played on November 10.