BCCI aiming to resume IPL 2025 in May following ceasefire

The BCCI has begun taking steps towards resuming IPL 2025 in May following the announcement of a ceasefire between India and Pakistan that came into effect at 1130 GMT (1700 IST and 1630 PKT) on Saturday.

ESPNcricinfo has learned that all ten franchises are trying to recall overseas players and coaching staff back to India as plans are afoot to restart the tournament as soon as possible. It is understood the IPL could start as soon as the following weekend - around May 15 - subject to Indian government permission.

The BCCI had to suspend the tournament for a week on Friday following the escalation of cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan that led to the abandonment of the match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals midway through the first innings in Dharamsala on May 8.

The immediate challenge for the franchises is to try and bring back their overseas contingent, most of whom left India between Friday and Saturday. Several franchises have reached out to players and staff asking them to be ready to fly back to India. Some players and support staff who are in transit have been asked to halt further travel for the time being. One of the franchises even asked its coaching staff to postpone travel out of India as they were getting ready to depart on Sunday.

Some teams are more fortunate than others in this regard: only two Gujarat Titans overseas players - Jos Buttler and Gerald Coetzee - have left the country and the franchise is trying to bring them back.

While the franchises remained optimistic earlier on Saturday that most overseas players would return if the tournament were to resume in May, they acknowledged there would be no guarantees if the season extended beyond May 25, when the IPL 2025 final was scheduled to be played in Kolkata. That's because of bilateral commitments for several players, as well as the World Test Championship (WTC) final between Australia and South Africa, starting on June 11 at Lord's.

A total of 57 matches had been completed in IPL 2025, and the 58th was going on May 8 between PBKS and DC in Dharamsala when it was called off after 10.1 overs of play. The IPL has not yet taken a call on whether that match will be replayed.

There are 12 league matches and four playoffs remaining in the season, and one possibility is that these fixtures could be played in three southern cities: Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad. Seven teams remain in the race for the playoffs, with only Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) out of contention.