BCCI had announced almost a month ago that IPL 2022’s mega auctions will be held on 12th and 13th February at Bengaluru. However the venue is now under speculation to be shifted due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the nation after the emergence of the new Omicron variant.
The Ranji Trophy has already been postponed and BCCI can not risk it by conducting the auction at a COVID prone region.
Fortunately the hotels for the mega event were not yet booked and thus BCCI will not suffer any financial losses.
The three standby cities that BCCI has thought about are Kolkata, Kochi and Mumbai. If the auction is indeed shifted from Bengaluru, it will be conducted in one of these three cities where the COVID-19 cases are slightly less in number as compared to the rest of the nation.
However, if the situation worsens further, the mega auction can be postponed as well.
“Some things are out of our hands and we must wait. Bookings and stuff will not be an issue if we have an idea about the restrictions. We are closely monitoring the situation and are in talks with the state associations. If we need to move the venue, it can be done on short notice,” a senior BCCI official said according to Zee News.