SLPL T20 tournament to be start from August 2012

It has been announced and confirmed by the Officials of Sri Lanka Cricket that the initial Sri Lanka Premier League 2012 is get off the blocks during the month of August this year prior to the ICC World T/20 tournament to be held in Sri Lanka during the month of September 2012.The inaugural edition of the Sri Lanka Premier League. The tournament is scheduled to be held during the period 10^th August to 31^st August this year.

Sri Lanka Premier League postponed to 2012

The Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) has been postponed to August 2012 after facing a series of problems, including the unexpected withdrawal of Indian players from the tournament. In its place Sri Lanka Cricket, the league's owners, will conduct the regular inter-provincial Twenty20 tournament featuring five domestic sides without involving foreign players.

An official announcement is awaited, though South Africa's Herschelle Gibbs, one of the overseas players linked with the tournament, told this website that he'd been informed of the one-year deferral.

ESPNcricinfo understands that the decision to postpone the league - which was scheduled to start on July 19 - was taken on Thursday at a meeting between the SLC's new committee and Somerset Entertainment Ventures, the league's organisers. Given the BCCI's decision not to let Indian players participate and the time crunch, both parties felt it prudent to delay the launch. A four-week window in August 2012 was identified as the best time for the tournament; meanwhile the SLC will continue to lobby the BCCI for Indian participation.

The BCCI had withheld its permission on the grounds that Somerset, which owned the commercial rights, would be handling the contracts for international players and that could lead to complications should disputes arise over payments. In order to assuage the Indian board, SLC was willing to back the Indian players' contracts so that their financial interests were protected, but that was not enough to satisfy the BCCI. There have been suggestions that former IPL chairman Lalit Modi had a hand in the event, but SLC and Somerset have repeatedly denied the allegation, as has Modi.

The BCCI's decision meant the tournament did not have a broadcaster for the lucrative Indian market, a situation that made it much more difficult for the SLPL to find a secure financial footing. Adding to the sense of confusion was last week's dissolution of the SLC committee that had created the tournament, and its replacement by a new panel.

The Indian board's stand - which marked a U-turn of sorts after an initial green signal - was contrary to that of the boards of Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Pakistan, all of whom extended their support to the tournament. Tim May, the chief executive of Federation of International Cricketers' Associations (FICA), had also backed the event.

BCCI not to send players for SLPL

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has stuck to its guns on the Sri Lankan Premier League (SLPL). During a tele-conference with the top officials of the Sri Lankan Cricket (SLC), BCCI secretary N Srinivasan told the SLC officials that the Indian board would not be in a position to allow its players to take part in Lanka's version of the IPL.

A disappointed SLC took the decision in its stride.

 "It is their decision and we cannot force them to change their position," Sri Lanka sports minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage told DNA on Thursday. "We knew that India was not going to change its stand. That was the reason why we did not go to India. We made an attempt to convince them but the BCCI told us that it cannot reverse its stand. They seem to have some apprehensions over the tournament," the sports minister said. SLC chairman DS de Silva and secretary Nishantha Ranatunga spoke to the Indian board officials on Thursday.

 The BCCI, it may be recalled, recently decided not to let its players take part in the SLPL as they think it as a private tournament. Twelve Indian players were to take part in the 16-day event.
The minister said although Sri Lanka is disappointed, it continued to hold the Indian board as a close friend.

 "The decision is not going to affect our relations. The BCCI continues to be our friend," he said. Asked if Sri Lanka will release its players for the Indian Premier League (IPL), the minister said that decision will be determined by the FTP. "We will decide that matter basing on our team's international commitment. But take my word, we will not be influenced by BCCI's refusal to release the players," he remarked.

The absence of Indian players is going to have a huge impact on the television revenue for the SLPL. With less than a month left for the start of the tournament, the Lanka board is yet to finalise a broadcaster. Now that the league will not have any Indian flavour, the television deal could be affected.

 "A lot depended on the Indian participation. Now that the Indians are not coming, we will try to sign a deal with a broadcaster internally in our country," the minister admitted.

The SLC initially thought of disbanding the tournament. Then it wanted to hold the inter-provincial tournament without the participation of foreign players. But as the SLC has already signed up with some foreign players, it has decided to go ahead with the tournament with the available foreign players. The tournament will be held from July 19 to August 4, DNA reports.