Mohammed Azharuddin: Will need a complete overhaul of FTP to fit in IPL

Mohammed Azharuddin

Former India captain-turned-administrator Mohammed Azharuddin feels that all cricket boards should come together to redraw the international calendar as the COVID-19 pandemic has ensured that the current schedule is irredeemable. Azharuddin, who is the president of the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA), feels that tweaking of the Futures Tours and Programmes (FTP) is also necessary to accommodate the Indian Premier League, which is important for both domestic and foreign players.

"I am sure they can have a restructured FTP for two years because of so much of uncertainty in prevailing circumstances. I mean you can always prepare for good times but you can't prepare for bad times," the 57-year-old former skipper told PTI during an interaction. "Once things settle down, we can have a dialogue with other member nations," he added. The IPL, which was scheduled to be held from March 29-May 24, is set to be postponed indefinitely as the country stares at a lockdown till the end of this month to contain the pandemic. "If they have to slot IPL, the whole itinerary needs to be changed. That's one option or else stick to the current itinerary with whatever gone being gone. But that means huge losses for all the stakeholders and is not practical," said Azharuddin, whose own Association hosts seven home games of Sunrisers Hyderabad.

"Therefore, I am expecting a complete overhaul of the FTP, if we have to fit in the IPL. I feel all the boards will agree as everybody is getting affected. But obviously, BCCI is affected more," he added. However, the man who led India in three editions of the 50-over World Cup, felt that the World T20 in Australia in October-November will not be done away with. "I don't think the World T20's slot will be gone. It's in third week of October and if things are okay by then, I would believe the World T20 will happen. This is purely my personal opinion as you can't tinker with a World Cup. But obviously I'm certain that the IPL will get accommodated in somewhere."

Catch up on all the latest sports news and updates here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates.

Mid-Day is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@middayinfomedialtd) and stay updated with the latest news

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever