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For now, Season 18 of the IPL has been suspended for a week. At some point in the next seven days, the tournament’s governing council will, in consultation and confabulation with numerous other deeply involved parties, decide the future course of action. Less than a fourth of the tournament – 16 matches, including the four playoff ties – has been kept in abeyance. The developments of the week to come will determine when, or whether, and where these games will be held.

No one in their sane mind will question the wisdom of suspending the league, given what is unfolding at our borders with Pakistan. That being said, it is learnt that every cancelled match comes at a hefty cost, literally. The loss stemming from every non-match is estimated to be between ₹100 and ₹125 crore and even after insurance steps in, that loss translates to half that amount when broadcast, sponsorship and other match- incomes are taken into consideration.

The IPL governing council, a powerful functional arm of the BCCI, has informed the franchises to be in a state of readiness for an early resumption of the tournament, though that could just be erring on the side of caution. Overseas players and members of the support staff, several of whom travelled to India with their families, were the most anxious once Operation Sindoor was launched. They have all since left for home but, given their trust in the Indian board and in their judgement/wisdom, a majority (if not all) will return – national commitments permitting – if the tournament were to resume in, say ten days’ time. If, however, the postponement is protracted, the first available window for the remaining matches to be staged is August-September. That will mean a rejig of India’s limited-overs tour of Bangladesh as well as a disruption of the T20 Asia Cup which, in any case, is in a limbo, given that the prospect of an India-Pakistan cricket match in the near future is practically non-existent.

What if IPL 2025 is scrapped?

If, for reasons beyond control, the tournament has to be scrapped from this point onwards, the host broadcasters stand to surrender an estimated third of the ₹5,500-crore advertisement revenue they would have pencilled in. All the ten franchises will be affected to some degree or the other, but those that are more heavily reliant on revenue from the IPL central pool – which includes broadcast and sponsorship rights – will feel the pinch a lot more than the others. Then, there is also the matter of gate collections. While the four playoff matches are the property of the IPL/BCCI, the gate revenues from the seven ‘home’ league ties belong to the franchise based in that city. Royal Challengers Bengaluru had two matches still to play at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium, where tickets are dearer than at almost every other IPL venue. The break in action will therefore impact not just the momentum they have gathered on the field of play (eight wins in 11 matches, including two on the bounce at home after losing the first three) but also from a financial standpoint which, at the risk of repetition, simply can’t be wished away.

The players themselves will remain largely unaffected, but even if they were to take a hit, it is unlikely that, given the circumstances, they will complain too much. Paradoxically, those who have attracted lower bids perhaps stand to lose more, but then again, that is a small price to pay when one takes the larger picture into account.

That line of argument may not necessarily appeal to those who park themselves outside stadiums on match days with franchise ‘merchandise’ (not many of them genuine, authorised or official) for sale, or those who have dished out good money to secure rights to catering and other services at grounds during play. Or to the cabbies and the tuk-tuk drivers. But they will understand that these are extraordinary times and that while their losses are their own, they don’t match the sacrifices of the brave men and women who are putting their lives on the line for our sakes.