News Analysis India

Tag: Bio-Bubble

  • RCB release Hasaranga, Chameera from bio-bubble to join Sri Lanka for T20 World Cup qualifiers

    By PTI

    DUBAI: Royal Challengers Bangalore on Monday released all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga and pacer Dushmantha Chameera from the team’s bio-bubble to join the Sri Lankan squad ahead of its T20 World Cup qualifiers next week.

    Hasaranga and Chameera were roped in as replacement players for Australians Adam Zampa and Daniel Sams by the franchise ahead of the second leg of the ongoing season.

    While Hasaranga featured in two matches, Chameera was not picked in the playing XI for any of the games.

    The duo will miss RCB’s Eliminator against Kolkata Knight Riders in Sharjah on Monday.

    “Wanindu Hasaranga and Dushmantha Chameera have been released from the RCB bio bubble as they join up with the SL team for their #WT20 qualifiers.

    “We wish both of them the best & thank them for their professionalism & hard work during #IPL2021,” RCB tweeted.

    Sri Lanka are part of Group A and will begin their WT20 campaign against Namibia on October 18 in Abu Dhabi.

  • Hopefully we can maintain strong, bio-secure environment: RCB skipper Virat Kohli 

    By PTI

    DUBAI: India captain Virat Kohli said it is unfortunate to “end up here early” for the IPL after a COVID-19 outbreak led to the cancellation of the fifth Test against England and hoped for a “secure” bio-bubble in the league to tackle the “uncertain” times.

    Kohli, who will again lead Royal Challengers Bangalore in the tournament, along with other Indian players refused to take the field in the fifth Test against England at Old Trafford, after junior physio Yogesh Parmar became the fourth close-contact support staff to test positive for COVID-19.

    “Unfortunate that we had to end up here early, but with COVID in place, things are very uncertain,” Kohli told the RCB’s digital media platforms.

    “Anything can happen at any time. Hopefully, we’re able to maintain a good, strong, and secure environment, and have a quality IPL.

    “It’s going to be an exciting phase and a very important one for us at RCB and then for the Indian team at the T20 World Cup,” the Indian captain said.

    The IPL begins on Sunday and RCB will play their first match on Monday.

    The RCB will have some exciting new additions to their squad including leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga and Singapore batter Tim David. The skipper is looking forward to meet the new recruits.

    “I’ve been in touch with everyone. We’ve had discussions over the last month or so, a little longer than that with the replacements, who’s coming and who’s not. Eventually, we ended up replacing our key players with some top-quality cricketers,” the RCB skipper said.

    He believes that replacement players will fit into the system perfectly.

    “Our key players will be missed, and they are a part of the family, but the people coming in as well have great skill sets, especially for these conditions.

    “So, I’m very excited to see them, with the whole group at practice and certainly very excited to resume a very good season that started last time around,” he said.

  • Bubble watch: IPL franchises not letting their guard down  

    Express News Service

    CHENNAI: The English summer has come to an abrupt end, but the temperatures are soaring in the UAE. With just six days to go for the 2021 edition of the IPL to restart after a four-month gap, preparations are in full swing and with most players — except those who are featuring in the Caribbean Premier League and the bilateral series between South Africa and Sri Lanka — having checked in. Ever since the franchises landed in Dubai and Abu Dhabi towards the second half of August, the mood has been quite upbeat, with each one insisting on the safety of the environment.

    It is in complete contrast to what was in India — rather specifically in Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi and Ahmedabad — in the months of April and May. With the tournament commencing in the middle of a strong Covid-19 second wave in India under a bio-secure environment, there was a bit of anxiety and fear with many of the franchise officials keeping their fingers crossed to deliver a full tournament. In the end, the move to hold the tournament at home proved costly as coronavirus breached the bio-bubble, bringing the event to a halt at the halfway stage.

    With the league all set to resume and so much riding on it, the recent developments in Manchester mean franchises and the BCCI are not letting their guard down. Although it has been a while since all the teams landed in the gulf and they are feeling more at home, they are aware it can lead to complacency, and the arrival of India and England players straight from Manchester means they are extra vigilant.

    “There is so much at stake, which is why the six-day quarantine has been made mandatory. Although all are vaccinated and have tested negative in the RT-PCR tests, it is always better to be well prepared and cover the bases. Whether you fly in by a commercial flight or charter flight, the moment you use the airport, there is always an element of risk. So this quarantine is absolutely necessary because it avoids any jitters,” a franchise official told this newspaper.

    For the record, those players who are undergoing quarantine will take three RT-PCR tests in six days and will join the bubble only if they test negative in all.

    Incidentally, when the BCCI decided to host the event in India in six cities, the air travel was seen as the biggest cause of concern. In the UAE, there is no need to worry about it as all three venues will be accessed via bus travel. And moreover, franchises have also put to use the experience of their lessons from 2020, when the entire tournament was held in UAE. Unlike in India where some franchises couldn’t control the public from taking the lifts that the players used, it won’t be the case in UAE.

    With Dubai Expo beginning in October, the prices of hotel rooms have gone up when compared to the 2020 edition which was held just after lockdown. However, with crowd movement expected in the hotel, franchises have even gone to the extent of renting the entire hotel for themselves this time around. “Last time, the world hadn’t opened up to this extent. This time it is totally different and with locals vaccinated and foreigners expected to turn up, it is business as usual here. So to be on the safer side, franchises have booked entire hotels to themselves,” said an IPL official overseeing the preparations.

  • Chetan, who came out of the bio bubble to meet his father directly, said- I am getting the father’s treatment with the amount received from IPL.

    Corona, father of Rajasthan Royals fast bowler Chetan Sakaria, has been infected. After reaching Sakariya’s house, go straight to the hospital and see her father. Chetan hails from Gujarat. His father Kanji brother is admitted to the hospital due to corona infection. The IPL was intercepted due to some players being corona infected. After which Sakariya returned to Gujarat from Delhi. His team was to play second leg matches in Delhi. Chetan told the media that he had received information about his father’s infection a week earlier. He sent the money from the IPL to the father for his treatment. He said ‘I was lucky because I received my share payment from Rajasthan Royals a few days ago. I had transferred the money home so that my family could work under adverse circumstances. Chetan’s father is an auto driver Chetan’s father is an auto driver. A few days earlier, his brother had committed suicide. The amount of Chetan’s earnings is the amount received from IPL. Chetan was added to the IPL auction for 2021 by Rajasthan Royals for Rs 1.20 crore. Under IPL rules, the player is paid 30 per cent of the amount by the franchisee after joining the camp. After that 50% of the amount is given after the half of the tournament is over. As there are 60 matches in the 14th season of the IPL and 29 matches are over. Only then the IPL has been stopped. In such a situation, 60 to 70 percent amount has been paid to the players from the teams. Teams will pay the remaining amount after the IPL is over. Chetan took 7 wickets in 7 matches Chetan Sakaria has taken 7 wickets in seven matches played in his first IPL at an economy rate of 8.22. He took the wickets of MS Dhoni, KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal. He has taken 35 wickets from 23 T20 matches at an economy rate of 7.44, playing for Saurashtra. Dhoni’s parents have also been corona infected Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s parents have also become corona infected. Dhoni’s parents became corona infected during the IPL, due to which he was admitted to the hospital in Ranchi. Now both have recovered and gone home.

  • At least we’re getting to do what we like, says Rohit Sharma on bio-bubble life 

    By ANI
    CHENNAI: While many cricketers have talked about how difficult life becomes inside the bio-secure environment, Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma on Thursday spoke about the positives which a player can take while he is in the bubble amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The IPL 2021 will commence on Friday with Mumbai Indians locking horns against Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

    And Rohit is happy that he is getting to play cricket which is the only thing matters for him at the end of the day.

    “A lot of people are going through hard times, a lot of people are not able to work. Not able to do what they like to. At least we’re lucky that we’re getting to do what we like. But I am happy playing cricket which is what I love at the end of the day,” said Rohit in the video posted on Mumbai Indians’ Twitter handle.

    The 32-year-old also pointed out how bubble life helped him create good memories during the 13th edition of the cash-rich league which wasn’t the case before the pandemic grappled the entire world.

    “If we have to adjust, we have to adjust. And try and see how you can get the best out of this bubble life as well. Like we’ve had some good times in the bubble. Especially during the IPL in the UAE, we had some solid memories that we created in the UAE,” said Rohit.

    “Plus the bubble life in Australia and now in India, when we played against England, it was good. We got to know a lot of players, who usually don’t come out of their room,” he further said on the eve of the IPL opener.

    “So we had the team room, where we used to go out and chill. Where we used to go out and chill and talk about a lot of stuff, which was always nice. Which is something I feel has changed from the previous year. It’s nice to have the company around and have that bonding going,” Rohit signed off. 

  • Former Australia coach John Buchanan explains how Virat Kohli’s absence will impact India

    Former Australia coach John Buchanan recalled India’s historic Test series win in Australia, saying even though it was Cheteshwar Pujara, who emerged the highest run-scorer for India in the series, captain Virat Kohli’s contributions were equally significant. During India’s famous 2-1 series win in Australia in 2018-19, Pujara had starred with 521 runs in four Tests, including three centuries, while Kohli totalled 282 runs.

    Even though that kind of performance was no where close to the one Kohli had in 2014/15 – where he’d scored 692 runs, Buchanan reckons Kohli was a monumental figure in the series and the India captain’s absence will have an impact on India’s performance in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

    “He (Kohli) has done an incredibly good job – irrespective of whether he is scoring runs or not. If we go back to 2019, (Cheteshwar) Pujara was the star of the series and Kohli made some contributions, so did (Ajinkya) Rahane.But Kohli’s real contribution is his leadership and captaincy and the way he instills greatness – not only to win games, but also in finding a way to beat teams,” Buchanan told Sportstar.

    During the last week of the IPL, Kohli had touched upon the Australian tour and underlined how the bio-bubble duration should also be counted in the overall duration of the tour. Being in bio-bubbles tends to have an effect – a sort of mental wear down on players – something Kohli had touched upon, and highlighting the same, Buchanan reckons that is where India will miss Kohli the most.

  • 27,000 people to see India-Australia Test match in Adelaide, permission granted

    27,000 spectators will be allowed to watch the match in the first day night Test against India at the Adelaide Cricket Stadium in Australia. Cricket Australia confirmed this report on Tuesday. This number of spectators is 50 percent of the total capacity of the stadium. Due to the corona virus epidemic, cricket matches are currently being played in an empty stadium in a bio-bubble environment. Some spectators will be present on this day night Test between India and Australia, starting on 17 December.

    India will play three ODIs, three T20s and four Test matches during the Australia tour. The first ODI in Sydney will be held on 27 November while the Test series will start in Adelaide from 17 December. According to a report, 27,000 tickets are available for each day of the first day-night test. Indian captain Virat Kohli will return home after playing in the first Test. The BCCI has given Virat permission for this. Virat’s wife Anushka Sharma will give birth to her first child in the new year and that is why Virat will return home.

    This will be the first pink ball test between India and Australia. Australia has hosted four day-night Test matches in Adelaide while India played their only day night Test against Bangladesh at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata last year. The Boxing Day Test will be played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground from 26 to 30 December. The government has allowed 25 per cent of the total capacity of the stadium to watch the match. 30,000 spectators will be allowed to attend the fourth Test in Brisbane, which is 75 per cent of the total capacity. For every day of the Boxing Day Test, the government has allowed 25,000 spectators to watch the matches.

    The second Test will be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground where 23,000 spectators will be allowed to watch the match and this number is 50 per cent of the total capacity. The traditional Pink Test will start at Sydney Cricket Ground from January 7, in which 23,000 fans will be allowed to watch matches which is 50 per cent of the total capacity.