Coronavirus: Doubts over foreign players participation in IPL due to fresh visa restrictions

Foreign players, who were to take part in the Indian Premier League (IPL), will not be available till April 15 due to visa restrictions imposed by the government.

"Yes, foreign players will not be available. We will discuss this and other issues at our governing council meeting scheduled for March 14," a source in IPL governing council told ANI.

The Central government has suspended all visas to India till April 15 as part of measures to contain the spread of coronavirus.

The 13th edition of IPL is scheduled to commence on March 29, with Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings meeting at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai for the first match.

Earlier on Wednesday, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said that the IPL should happen behind closed doors or it should be postponed after 10 positive cases of coronavirus were confirmed in the state. He further stated that the final decision will be taken by the government on Thursday.

"In the current situation, it is not possible to schedule the IPL match in a packed stadium. We want it to happen in closed doors or postpone it for a later date. The final decision will be taken tomorrow. We all are of the view that IPL should not take place at this time as it can be very dangerous," Tope told reporters.

The Centre said that with 10 more people confirmed positive for novel coronavirus, the total number of COVID-19 cases in India has jumped to 60. Out of the 60 cases, 36 are Indian citizens.

World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic and expressed deep concern both by the alarming levels of spread, severity and by the alarming levels of inaction.