T20 World Cup: Shifting the tournament to UAE is a good move
Recent reports suggest the ICC T20 World Cup will be moved out of India with the UAE serving as the first backup option. A TOI report said Oman's capital Muscat had been potentially identified as a new venue that already includes Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah.
"Yes, the BCCI, during the ICC board meeting, has formally asked for a four-week window to take a final call but, internally, they have said that they would like to keep the hosting rights and wouldn't mind the tournament being held in UAE and Oman," a senior board official, privy to ICC board developments, told PTI on condition of anonymity.
With these recent developments trickling in, the main question is how this impacts BCCI and Team India. Leaving financial and logistical factors aside, there are more advantages to moving the tournament to the UAE.
T20 World Cup faces minimal COVID-19 threat
With India continuing its battle against the COVID-19 pandemic, the chances of players getting infected are higher. However, this risk would be minimized if they play at a venue where the risk is low.
The rapid surge in cases and bio-bubble breaches during the IPL that led to its postponement was a major dampener and a repeat of a similar situation could effectively be avoided if the tourney is moved to the UAE.
"If you think about it practically, India is now reporting around 120,000 plus cases which is close to one third of what was being reported at the end of April and start of this month," the source explained. "But sitting on June 28, if you say "yes" to holding the World T20 in India, how can you predict the health situation in October if there is a third wave?"
Maximum player participation in T20 World Cup
Players pulling out makes a massive difference for any side. If the T20 World Cup does stay in India, there's a big chance that a bunch of players may opt out due to health and safety concerns.
Rumors suggesting the tournament will be shifted to the UAE will come as a relief to players who might be worried about travelling to the COVID-ravaged nation.
Subcontinent-like conditions benefit Team India
The subcontinent conditions would have made India favorites to win the T20 World Cup. After all, they did go on to win the ICC's 2011 Cricket World Cup with home conditions playing their part.
What this means is India will go in to play in conditions they're familiar with. With the IPL 2021 set to resume in September, they have a month to acclimatize to the conditions, giving them the edge as they take the field in the T20 World Cup.