The restart of the PBA Philippine Cup is on the horizon after the league secured the approval to resume the conference in Pampanga.

PBA commissioner Willie Marcial announced the league has been given the go signal by Pampanga Governor Dennis Pineda to start practice sessions in the nearby Central Luzon province on Tuesday, August 24.

Marcial said teams will train in Pampanga for seven to eight days before the Philippine Cup gets going again.

“If there are no problems, then we will start,” Marcial said in Filipino.

The 12 PBA teams will practice in three different sites around Pampanga, while the Don Honorio Ventura State University (DHVSU) in Bacolor will serve as the venue of the official games.

Marcial said the PBA is just waiting for the green light from DHVSU president Enrique Baking.

The PBA halted the Philippine Cup earlier in August after the government put Metro Manila under enhanced community quarantine due to the rising cases of the coronavirus Delta variant.

In an attempt to curb the transmission of COVID-19, the league will subject teams to RT-PCR testing every seven days.

Also, teams will undergo antigen testing during gamedays.

The PBA also adjusted its calendar as it will now stage games from Wednesday to Sunday for a total of five gamedays per week. – Rappler.com