With the April 6th Indian Premier League (IPL) fixture between Kolkata Knight Riders and Lucknow Super Giants coinciding with the festival of Ram Navami, the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) has written to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to reschedule the match.
This move came after the Kolkata Police and the local authorities informed the CAB officials that they won’t be in a position to provide adequate security for the fixture due to Ram Navami festivities.
“We had long discussions with the authorities and the police where they made it clear that it won’t be possible to provide adequate security due to the festivities, despite it being a day fixture. We have now requested the BCCI for a rescheduling, and hopefully, we will have clarity over the next couple of days,” CAB president Snehasish Ganguly told Sportstar from Kolkata.
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However, sources in the BCCI indicated that with a packed schedule, it might be difficult to reschedule the fixture. Rather, there are discussions on whether the game could be moved to a different venue.
“We have received a formal request from the CAB and are currently exploring the possibilities,” a source in the BCCI said, indicating that it is in conversation with the respective teams and the logistics teams to figure out a solution.
Last year, too, a similar situation arose when a KKR home match coincided with Ram Navami, leading to a rescheduling.
However, with LSG’s ownership ties with Kolkata-based industrialist Sanjiv Goenka and the addition of captain Rishabh Pant to the team, the cricket fans of Kolkata are looking for a solution to the impasse.
“The demand for the tickets will be high for the match, and we are hopeful of finding a solution at the earliest,” the source said, adding that with both teams having a week’s gap in between, the deliberations of an alternative is on. While KKR will play CSK in Chennai on April 11, LSG will host Gujarat Titans at home on April 12.