India have a very tight schedule in 2021. IPL-2021 getting suspended might have just been a blessing in disguise for the men in blue as they can now get some rest. India are all set to tour England. They will be playing the World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand and then play a series against England. They will be playing in England from June to August-September. However, things might just get a little tricky now as The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president and former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly revealed that India is all set to tour Sri Lanka for a limited-overs series in July.
This news was revealed on 9 May, Sunday. So this means that one Indian team in England for a Test series, another Indian team in Sri Lanka for an ODI and T20I series? Sourav Ganguly also confirmed that India will he touring Sri Lanka for three ODI matches and five T20I matches. When asked if the remainder of the IPL could be held in the almost month-long gap after the WTC final, Ganguly said that won’t be possible as India are slated to tour Sri Lanka. “No. India is supposed to go to Sri Lanka for three ODIs and five T20Is. There are lots of organisational hazards like 14-day quarantine…This quarantine is tough to handle. Too early to say how we can find a slot to complete the IPL,” Ganguly told Sportstar without revealing the schedule. This means that it is going to be very hard to conduct the remainder of IPL-2021 as there will be hardly any time available. Everything now depends upon the T20 World Cup which is suppose to take place October-November as the only way for IPL-2021 to take place is if there is a gap before or after the T20 World Cup. The only other way to conduct IPL-2021 is if the T20 World Cup is postponed again. In the meanwhile, India will now have two different teams for two different tours. One could expect all the limited-overs specialists to tour Sri Lanka. India were set to tour Sri Lanka in June 2020 for 3 ODIS and as many T20Is as part of the ICC World Cup Super League. However, that postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The last time Sri Lanka faced India in an ODI match was during the 2019 World Cup. Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul scored centuries as India managed to defeat Sri Lanka with ease. The last time Sri Lanka faced India in a T20I series was in early 2020, in the 3 match T20I series between the two sides. India won the second and third matches comfortably, by 78 runs and 7 wickets respectively.the first match was abandoned due to rain. However, this might be a golden opportunity for the island nation as they are not only mahine at home, but are also facing a second string Indian team. This doesn’t mean that it would be a cakewalk for them as everyone knows how strong India’s bench strength really is.