By Adrian Stewart Co

With the National Capital Region (NCR) shifting to Alert Level 3 at least until January 15, the PBA decided to postpone its scheduled 2021 Governors’ Cup matches this week at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

In an advisory released on the league’s official website yesterday, the PBA was forced to halt its games until Games and Amusements Board (GAB) gives a go signal for the league resumption.

Apart from GAB response, the PBA also needs the approval of local government units (LGUs) where they wanted to hold its remaining matches amid the heightened coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) alert level.

The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has placed the NCR under Alert Level 3 following the sudden surge of COVID-19 cases just after Christmas.

Under the Alert Level 3, contact sports are prohibited unless it will be held under a bubble-type setup and fans will once again not be allowed to watch it live.

The PBA has just started to allow fans to watch live last month at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City and was supposed to expand the games at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City this month.

PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial, however, said the league is prepared for contingency measures, including playing under a bubble in Metro Manila, just for the season-ending conference to continue.

“Pinag-usapan na namin ng mga PBA team governors na pwede tayong mawalan ng fans at saan ang venue, papaano ‘pag bubble at siguro kanya-kanyang hotel dito sa Metro Manila,” he said.

Prior to this, the PBA was forced to postpone its PBA Philippine Cup games in March 2020 after just a game before resuming it later that year under a bubble in Pampanga.

Last year, the league also halted its 2021 PBA Philippine Cup at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City after a month before resuming it under a semi-bubble in Pampanga./ASC, WDJ