Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 set to be postponed 'again' due to COVID-19?

While cricketers from around the world are currently playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL 2020) in the UAE, Sri Lankan cricketers will have to wait for a little longer to get back on the field following the latest development regarding the Sri Lanka Premier League 2020. The Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 was scheduled to be played from November 14 to December 6 with the Sri Lanka Premier League T20 draft slated for October 1. 

Also read: Sri Lanka Premier League 2020: Munaf Patel And Praveen Kumar Confirm Participation

Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 likely to be postponed again 

However, according to a report by InsideSport, the Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 is likely to be postponed due to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) being in a fix considering the COVID-19 protocols in the country, which has reportedly caused lot of conflict between the country's government and the cricket board. The Sri Lankan authorities have put up 14-day quarantine norms, which has not been accepted by Bangladesh. The report further stated that the SLC will shortly announce the postponement officially.

Also read: Shahid Afridi, Munaf Patel, Chris Gayle To Feature In Mega Sri Lanka Premier League Draft

Possibilities of Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 taking place?

An SLC source, while speaking to the same media outlet, revealed that It is impossible for foreign cricketers taking part in the Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 this season to comply with such stringent guidelines. According to sources, expecting players like Chris Gayle, Shahid Afridi and Shakib Al Hasan to come and spend two weeks in quarantine is too much to ask for. As a result, the SLC seems to feel they have no choice but to postpone the tournament to January 2021.

Also Read; Shoaib Akhtar, Wasim Akram To Ignore IPL Snub With Sri Lanka Premier League Mentoring Role

Shahid Afridi, Munaf Patel, Yuvraj Singh to feature in Sri Lanka Premier League 2020?

The Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 was the much-awaited tournament that Sri Lanka Cricket was looking forward to. The tournament was finally slated to be played from November 14 to December 6. The Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 was to feature five teams, named after the cities of Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Dambulla and Jaffna.

Also Read: Bangladesh Cricket Board Shuns Sri Lanka Cricket's Bio-bubble Measures, Oct Tour In Doubt

Some of the prominent cricketers who were set to take part in Sri Lanka Premier League 2020 are Chris Gayle, Shahid Afridi Bravo, Darren Sammy, Darren Bravo, Shakib-Al-Hasan, Ravi Bopara, Colin Munro, Munaf Patel and Vernon Philander with each franchise getting a chance to sign up to six international players.

Recently, Shahid Afridi was named as the icon player for the Galle Gladiators in the Sri Lanka Premier League 2020. Galle Gladiators is owned by Nadeem Omar, who also owns the PSL 2020 franchise Quetta Gladiators. Overall, 30 international and 65 local cricketers were to be up for grabs. Sri Lanka Cricket has shortlisted around 150 foreign cricketers and 24 of them are Pakistan players.

On the other hand, former India cricketers Munaf Patel and Praveen Kumar were also likely to take part in the Sri Lanka Premier League. The inclusion of Indian players is subjected to the issue of NOCs by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Yuvraj Singh is also reportedly coming out of retirement to play T20 cricket for the Punjab team, although there was no word about his confirmation to play in the Sri Lanka Premier League 2020.

Image: Sri Lanka Cricket / Twitter