New Delhi, April 11 (PTI): The BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) has short-listed four cities to host the remaining scheduled Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket matches in Chennai that would also be the Chennai Super King’s (CSK) home matches, in the wake of a volatile political situation in Tamil Nadu over the Cauvery water dispute, the board's Committee of Administrators (CoA) head Vinod Rai said.
According to sources in the IPL, Visakhapatnam is the front runner from among the four cities, the others being Thiruvananthapuram, Pune and Rajkot.
There were already calls by various groups not to host cricket matches in the city when the state was facing such a ''grave'' situation.
Protests were witnessed on Tuesday ahead of the match between CSK and Kolkata Knight Riders and an identified protestor flung a shoe at CSK’s Ravindra Jadeja during the match.
Rai confirmed that the prevailing situation has forced them to explore options.
“We are thinking on the lines of shifting the IPL matches from Chennai. There are four alternative venues that the BCCI has kept ready. They are Visakhapatnam, Thiruvananthapuram, Pune and Rajkot. CSK can play their matches at these venues,” Mr. Rai told PTI.
“We have to keep in mind the prevailing political and security situation in the state. But we have told the CSK franchise to evaluate the current situation and take a final call in this regard. It will be CSK’s decision,” Rai, a former Comptroller and Auditor General, said.
IPL’s most popular franchise CSK has made a comeback to the League after serving two-year suspension on charges of spot-fixing in 2013.
The IPL sources said Visakhapatnam was likely to be picked by the CSK management due to logistical reasons.
However, CSK are not playing a home match before April 20 and the situation may get better before the clash against Rajasthan Royals.
IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla had also spoken to the Union Home Secretary on Tuesday, seeking government intervention for the smooth conduct of IPL matches in Chennai.
