3 Reasons why IPL 2019 might not be as successful as the previous editions

April and May are two months every cricket fan in India and across the world waits for eagerly. It is the Indian Premier League (IPL) season where star players from India and across the globe go head to head for the coveted trophy. IPL 2018 was a huge hit and with top teams Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals returning from exile, the excitement had doubled among fans to see their favourite players back in yellow and blue respectively.

IPL has been a huge success every year since its inception in 2008. The tournament has grown leaps and bounds with every passing year. However, this year won’t be the same as the earlier editions.

We will try to analyse 3 possible reasons why IPL 2019 won't be as successful as its previous editions.

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#1 Virat Kohli demanding rest for his key players

Mumbai Indians will miss Bumrah in important games if BCCI approves Kohli's demand

In the recently concluded team meeting at Hyderabad, talks were that the Indian Cricket captain Virat Kohli wanted his key players rested for ample time in IPL, keeping them fit for the World Cup. The Delhi-lad wants the workload of all the key players who will be part of the World Cup to be managed effectively, giving them enough rest throughout the two months of the IPL.

One would be eager to see if the BCCI (The Board of Control for Cricket in India) approves the Indian captain’s demands. In that scenario, key players such as Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya would certainly miss out playing some meaningful games for their respective sides.

Mohammed Shami was not allowed to bowl more than 15 overs for his side in a Ranji trophy game. Only time shall tell how workload management is implemented in the IPL 2019 season.

#2 Unavailability of foreign players

Rajasthan Royals will miss the services of Jos Buttler in the second leg of the tournament

The central obstruction for this year’s IPL is the ICC Cricket World Cup which is bound to start immediately after IPL. With the World Cup being the top priority for all the nations, the cricket boards would not want to put their team balance in jeopardy by risking their players in the IPL which has an intensive two-month schedule.

England and Wales cricket board (ECB) has already made it clear that all the English players won’t be available in the month of May as they have scheduled bilateral ODI series with Pakistan and Ireland. Same goes with Cricket Australia (CA) Board. It was evident in the IPL released-player list last month. Most of the franchises let go critical players from Australia and England with no clarity of their availability.

It won’t be a surprise if the South African cricket board recalls its key players as well. South Africa are scheduled to play the World Cup opener on 30th may against hosts England at the Kia Oval in London, and the availability of the likes of Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Faf du Plessis is undoubtedly in question.

#3 IPL likely to be held outside India

IPL could return to South Africa after 10 years

Things get worse as the 2019 edition is set to take place outside India, at least for the first leg of the tournament due to the scheduled general elections around that time.

The IPL governing body is yet to finalize on the venues, but most likely the competition would be held in either United Arab Emirates (UAE) or at the Rainbow nation South Africa.

IPL outside India would mean that sizeable chunk of revenue will be lost through sponsorships. Also, fans will not get to witness the action of their favourite players at the stadiums. Even if the second leg comes back to India, several key players won’t be available in the month of May.

All in all, things don’t look great for the franchises, and it will be interesting to see how they go about their business in the IPL auction this season that is set to take place in Jaipur on the 18th of December.