The Indian men’s cricket team will host their English counterparts in February 2021 after returning from the tour of Australia, informed BCCI president Sourav Ganguly on Thursday in a letter to the presidents and secretaries of all affiliated state associations.

In a letter which has been accessed by IANS, Ganguly said that India will start hosting tournaments next year, which includes the T20 World Cup and also the ODI World Cup in 2023. He further informed that the next Indian Premier League (IPL) will be played from April 2021.

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Due to the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s IPL will be played in the UAE in from September 19 to November 10.

Meanwhile, the BCCI president was also seen dropping lights on the future of domestic cricket as he assured that the national governing body of cricket is making all the efforts to mark its return.

“We are happy to inform all our members that the BCCI will be hosting IPL 2020 in UAE from September 19 till November 10. We have taken all necessary precautionary measures to make sure that the IPL goes on smoothly,” Ganguly said in the letter accessed by IANS.

“In the domestic cricket context, we are currently in the off season and the BCCI is making all efforts to ensure that domestic cricket resumes as and when the conditions permit. The health and safety of players and all other involved in domestic cricket is of utmost importance to BCCI and we are constantly monitoring all aspects.

“All members will be duly informed about the future course of action and suggestions will be taken before we resume domestic cricket. We are hopeful that the COVID-19 situation will improve over the next few months and we will be able to start domestic cricket in a safe and healthy environment,” he wrote.

“The BCCI and the Indian cricket team will continue to fulfill its FTP commitments. The senior Indian men’s team will travel to Australia for its series starting in December this year and will come back to the country for a series against England starting from February next year. This will be followed by IPL 2021 in April. The tours of the senior Indian women’s teams are also under discussion and more details will be shared shortly,” he added.

After IPL 13, India are currently scheduled to travel to Australia for three ODIs, to be played in October (11, 14 and 17), followed by a four-match Test series beginning December 3. The Border-Gavaskar Trophy will be followed by a three-match T20I series to be played in January (12, 15 and 17).