The chances of completing the remainder of the Indian Premier League (IPL) season in the United Kingdom (UK) or the Middle East are very slim, says the Rajasthan Royals owner Manoj Badale.

During a disastrous second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in India, several people inside the IPL bio-secure bubble tested positive and the tournament was indefinitely postponed.

The previous edition of the IPL was also played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) behind closed doors because of the worldwide outbreak of the pandemic.

With India set to host the upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup, Badale said it would be among the biggest hurdles for BCCI to find a suitable window for the IPL.

“There is a possibility, a small possibility, that in September there might be something in the UK or possibly something in the Middle East either side of the T20 World Cup but it’s going to be a real challenge,” Badale told Reuters.

Badale reportedly said that players were already playing a lot of cricket and the international calendars are also pretty packed, that is why hosting the IPL would be a real challenge this year.

“In my opinion, the players are already playing too much cricket. The calendars are incredibly packed, particularly this year after COVID. Boards from around the world are trying to get as many competitions and as many test matches as possible,” he added.

As of now, the head of BCCI Sourav Ganguly has confirmed that it would be impossible to host the remaining matches in India where the number of infections has crossed 24 million. With that, Surrey and Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) have already offered to host the remaining 31 matches of the tournament in September.