IPL Cancellation Would Cost Indian Cricket Over $500M

Scrapping the "money-spinning Indian Premier League this year" because of the coronavirus pandemic would cost more than half a billion dollars to the Board of Control for Cricket in India, but BCCI Treasurer Arun Dhumal said that "cutting players' pay was not yet being considered." The tournament is "staring at a first wipeout in its 12-year history after the original March 29 start date was postponed repeatedly." A one-day int'l series against South Africa in March has "already been cancelled," but it is the IPL, which began in '08, that "generates the bulk of BCCI revenue and is thought to be worth more than" $11B per year to the Indian economy. Indian broadcaster Star Sports paid more than $220M for "five years of TV rights up to" '22 (AFP, 5/12).