President of the BCCI Sourav Ganguly interacts with media. File / Associated Press

Mohammad Faisal, Gulf Today

The pandemic situation in India forced the Indian cricket Board to shift this year's Twenty20 World Cup to the UAE.

The BCCI said it had told the International cricket Council (ICC) of its decision to host the event in the UAE in October and November.

Sourav Ganguly, President of the BCCI, confirmed that the ICC has been officially informed about the decision to shift the prestigious event to the UAE. We are looking into the details, Sourav said.

The matches will be played in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, the BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla said.

Some qualifiers may take place in Oman  prior  to matches in the UAE, the BCCI VP said.

The ICC had given the BCCI a deadline till June end to decide the host country for T20's showpiece event due the COVID-19 situation in India.

Earlier the IPL was forced to be suspended in May due to spike in COVID-19 cases in India, after some players were tested positive as cases surged in the country.

The remaining matches of the IPL will also be completed in the UAE ahead of the T20 World Cup.

Recently, the PSL 6, which had come to an abrupt halt due to outbreak of the coronavirus cases in the bio-secure bubble in Pakistan, was also successfully concluded in Abu Dhabi as the organsiers decided to shift the remaining matches to the UAE, which has become a safe haven for hosting the sporting events in the ongoing pandemic.