South Africa is the most preferred alternative venue for the Indian Premier League just in case it has to be shifted overseas due to the forthcoming general elections. In a press conference here on Thursday, BCCI secretary Sanjay Patil said: “We are considering a lot of options. We are meeting the Home Ministry to see the possible venues in India. Our main interest lies in carrying the IPL in India, but if not, South Africa is the preferred venue at the moment. But there is also a second and third option.”
IPL chairman Ranjib Biswal reiterated Patil’s hope of having the league in India and added: “We have a window from April 9 to June 3, and as the secretary said, we’re looking at options. We will be speaking to officials of the Government of India. We want to hold maximum number of matches in India, and if we get a green signal, the whole tournament can probably be played here. We are trying to meet the Home Ministry officials next week. After that, we will have a Governing Council meeting, where we plan to decide on the venue. We are looking at another ten days to sort this out.”
