Drought to affect the IPL matches in Maharashtra

What's the story?

The fear of a possible drought in Maharashtra could hamper the schedule of the IPL 2019 along with the general elections in India. According to the state government of Maharashtra, more than 900 villages are deemed as 'threatened' or 'affected' by the water crisis.

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Due to the Lok Sabha elections, the cricket committee that runs the IPL already has a task on its hands as they look to fit the right fixtures at the right time and the right venues. Now that Maharashtra is under the threat of a serious natural calamity, the privileges of hosting matches might be taken away from the Mumbai Indians.

The heart of the matter

The BCCI has also looked at doing away with the 'home and away' format in order to avoid clashes with the elections.

According to sources:

"The idea, therefore, was to keep neutral venues in mind and and host matches in areas that are not clashing with the elections. Now, it's also imperative to understand the drought situation better. Nobody's going to be surprised if PILs get filed in the courts."

Andhra Pradesh too, has been struck by droughts. Financial assistance of Rs. 900 Crore was recently approved by the central government from National Disaster Response Fund towards drought relief.

The fact that a few matches were shifted to Vizag could now be another headache. These states have been able to host Ranji Trophy matches with ease though.

What's next?

A lot of questions regarding the IPL venues, dates and timings are yet to be unearthed due to the ongoing issues and forthcoming events in the country. Meanwhile, the Indian cricket team will look to bounce back from their heavy defeat in the first T20I when they take on New Zealand again on 8 February.