The Indian Premier League had been indefinitely suspended on Tuesday after three clubs' players or personnel at three clubs were tested positive for COVID-19.

According to a statement released by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, local officials and tournament officials collectively agreed "to suspend the IPL 2021 season, with effect immediately."

"The BCCI just doesn't want to endanger the welfare of the players, support personnel, and all people participating in the IPL's organization,” the BCCI said. "These have been trying times, particularly in India. Although we attempted to add some optimism and cheer, but now the tournament must be suspended and everyone returns to their parents and family in these difficult times.”

The first cases that involve players within the IPL's biosecure bubble prompted the temporary suspension of Monday's game between Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore. On Tuesday, two Chennai Super Kings employees and a Sunrisers Hyderabad player tested positive for the virus.

The IPL has been conducting matches without viewers each evening from April 9, despite India's overburdened health system being brought to the breaking point by yet another global pandemic surge.

Players from all across the world play in the profitable Twenty20 competition, which was forced to move to the UAE last year due to the pandemic. The BCCI said that it would "conduct anything in its capacity" to ensure "the stable and safe transit of all IPL 2021 attendees."

On Tuesday, India's official tally of coronavirus cases exceeded 20 million, almost doubling in the previous three months, while deaths reportedly surpassed 220,000. As shocking as those statistics are, the real figures are thought to be much larger, with the underreporting indicating the healthcare system's issues.

The IPL decided to postpone the Kolkata-Bangalore game on Monday after Kolkata players Varun Chakravarthy and Sandeep Warrier were the first to test positive for COVID-19 within the IPL bubble.

And in the middle of the wave of Covid cases, Australian players Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa, and Kane Richardson went back home from the IPL last week. Tye was playing for the Rajasthan Royals, while Richardson and Zampa were for Bangalore.

Two more cricketers, Englishman Liam Livingstone of Rajasthan and Ravichandran Ashwin of Delhi, also left the IPL. Livingstone responded to "bubble exhaustion," and Ashwin wanted to be with his family through the turmoil. The IPL forged ahead on the condition that teams remain in bio-secure areas at hotels and resorts in the six locations in India where the competition is held.