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Tag: IPL

  • Really excited to get back in UAE: Mumbai Indians pacer Trent Boult

    By IANS

    ABU DHABI: New Zealand pacer Trent Boult said he is really excited to get back in the UAE ahead of the second leg of IPL 2021. In the first half of IPL 2021, Boult took eight wickets in seven matches at an economy rate of 8.46.”

    “I’ve enjoyed a couple of months. I’m really excited to get back here’ It’s obviously pretty hot. Six days in quarantine has been ticked off. Look forward to getting involved,” said Boult in a video posted by Mumbai Indians on Sunday.

    “There are obviously some good memories. Coming back through to the same hotel, same room. Amazing team room and obviously, the facilities are exactly the same. But there has been some good time. So hopefully, we can refresh the memory and pick up where we left off,” added Boult.

    The 32-year-old remarked that the side will reflect on past success and continue with what they know the best. “Different circumstances, with half the tournament played. So I’m sure all the franchises are well prepared and looking forward to getting into it. But the beauty is, we’ve had some success here. So it’s about going back and reflecting on that and hopefully continuing what we know best.”

    Boult’s countrymate, Adam Milne, was touched by other players showing him around the team hotel. “Getting used to the hotel which is lovely, and all the areas and being shown around by the boys who were here last year, which is nice, really nice,” said Milne, who played in one match in the first half of IPL 2021.

    The 29-year-old said he was in a cricketing rhythm while playing in the UK. Milne took 12 wickets for Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred and appeared for Kent in the”T20 Blast. “Not too bad.’Obviously, I’ve been playing some cricket in the UK. So, it’s nice to sort of keep a bit of a continuous cricket game. You’ve obviously been bowling in the backyard (laughing towards Boult).”

    Boult had a chuckle and said, “I think I’ve only just got here so I think it’s probably more about dusting off more cobwebs and getting used to the heat. Just easing into it. But Milne’s a couple of days to get him in and obviously been playing some good cricket over in England a’ well. So, it’s going to be exciting to hopefully get it “ack together.”

    Defending Champions Mumbai Indians will be opening their second leg of the IPL 2021 campaign against Chennai Super Kings on September 19 in Dubai.

  • CSK stars Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara, Moeen Ali arrive in Dubai, to undergo 6-day quarantine

    By ANI

    DUBAI: Chennai Super Kings (CSK) all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara and Moeen Ali on Sunday arrived in Dubai for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021.

    The boys will now undergo a six-day quarantine and join the rest of the squad members who are already in the IPL 2021 bubble.

    “En-coming. 4 times the joy today at Whistles Kingdom!” CSK tweeted.

    Meanwhile, RCB skipper Virat Kohli and pacer Mohammed Siraj also arrived in Dubai on Sunday ahead of the resumption of the IPL 2021. The duo will now undergo six-day mandatory quarantine and then they both will join the team bubble in Dubai.

    With the final Test between India and England in Manchester cancelled, IPL franchises on Friday got in touch with charter companies to fly out their players from Manchester to UAE for the resumption of the cash-rich league.

    The 14th season, which was postponed in May this year in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, will resume on September 19 in Dubai with a blockbuster clash between Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians.

    The action will then shift to Abu Dhabi where Kolkata Knight Riders will square off against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Sharjah will host its first game on September 24 when Royal Challengers Bangalore take on Chennai Super Kings.

    In all, 13 matches will be held in Dubai, 10 in Sharjah, and 8 in Abu Dhabi. The BCCI has decided to do away with contact tracing devices for the UAE leg, starting on September 19.

  • RCB skipper Virat Kohli, pacer Mohammed Siraj arrive in Dubai, to undergo six-day quarantine

    By ANI

    DUBAI: Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli and pacer Mohammed Siraj arrived in Dubai on Sunday ahead of the resumption of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 season.

    The duo will now undergo six-day mandatory quarantine and then they both will join the team bubble in Dubai.

    “The news you’ve all been waiting for: King Kohli and Miyan Magic have joined the team in Dubai,” the official handle of RCB tweeted on Sunday.

    Earlier, ANI had reported that RCB would be arranging a charter flight to get Virat Kohli and Mohammed Siraj into Dubai on Sunday morning, ahead of the resumption of the IPL 2021.

    “Yes, we have arranged a charter flight for Virat and Siraj, both of them will be flying out at 11:30 PM UK time on Saturday and they will reach Dubai early Sunday morning. The safe transit of players is the utmost priority for RCB. They will undergo 6-day quarantine there before joining the team bubble,” the source had said.

    The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has informed all franchises that every player coming in from the UK will have to undergo six days of hard quarantine before they can join the existing team bubbles in UAE for the resumption of the 2021 edition of the IPL.

    “The BCCI has informed us on Friday that every player coming in from UK to UAE will have to undergo six days of quarantine before they can join the team bubbles. Obviously the bubble to bubble transfer from UK to UAE no longer stands keeping in mind the current scenario,” the official said.

    With the final Test between India and England in Manchester cancelled, IPL franchises on Friday got in touch with charter companies to fly out their players from Manchester to UAE for the resumption of the cash-rich league.

    The 14th season, which was postponed in May this year in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, will resume on September 19 in Dubai with a blockbuster clash between Chennai Super Kings and defending champions Mumbai Indians.

    The action will then shift to Abu Dhabi where Kolkata Knight Riders will square off against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Sharjah will host its first game on September 24 when Royal Challengers Bangalore take on Chennai Super Kings. In all, 13 matches will be held in Dubai, 10 in Sharjah, and 8 in Abu Dhabi.

    The board has come up with a 46-page health advisory that lays down all the pointers that everyone associated with the IPL needs to follow in order to ensure the smooth functioning of the league.

  • Punjab Kings players KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami, Mayank Agarwal arrive in Dubai

    By ANI

    DUBAI: Punjab Kings players KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal and Mohammed Shami who were a part of the Indian squad for the Test series England landed in Dubai on Sunday for the second half of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021.

    These three players will now undergo mandatory six-day quarantine and thereafter, the players will join the rest of the squad.

    Earlier, the Delhi Capitals players who were part of the Indian squad for the Test series against England landed in Dubai safely on Sunday for the second half of the IPL 2021. The players, including Rishabh Pant, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ajinkya Rahane, Ishant Sharma, Axar Patel, Prithvi Shaw and Umesh Yadav, underwent Covid-19 tests upon arrival in Dubai.

    “The players will be serving a 6 day hard quarantine, as per IPL protocols, during which they will be tested thrice. Thereafter, the players will join the rest of the Delhi Capitals squad, who are already part of the bio-bubble,” said Delhi Capitals in its official statement.

    The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has informed all franchises that every player coming in from the UK will have to undergo six days of hard quarantine before they can join the existing team bubbles in UAE for the resumption of the 2021 edition of the IPL.

    “The BCCI has informed us on Friday that every player coming in from UK to UAE will have to undergo six days of quarantine before they can join the team bubbles. Obviously the bubble to bubble transfer from UK to UAE no longer stands keeping in mind the current scenario,” the official said.

    With the final Test between India and England in Manchester cancelled, IPL franchises on Friday got in touch with charter companies to fly out their players from Manchester to UAE for the resumption of the cash-rich league.

    The 14th season, which was postponed in May this year in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, will resume on September 19 in Dubai with a blockbuster clash between Chennai Super Kings and defending champions Mumbai Indians.

    The action will then shift to Abu Dhabi where Kolkata Knight Riders will square off against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Sharjah will host its first game on September 24 when Royal Challengers Bangalore take on Chennai Super Kings. In all, 13 matches will be held in Dubai, 10 in Sharjah, and 8 in Abu Dhabi.

    The board has come up with a 46-page health advisory that lays down all the pointers that everyone associated with the IPL needs to follow in order to ensure the smooth functioning of the league.

  • Rajasthan Royals batsman Manan Vohra looking to use lessons learnt from first leg for improved show in UAE

    By PTI

    DUBAI: Disappointed to have not capitalised on the opportunities in the first leg of the IPL, Rajasthan Royals batsman Manan Vohra aims to use all the learnings to put up an improved show when the T20 league resumes on September 19.

    The 28-year-old from Chandigarh could manage only 42 runs in the four matches that he played before the IPL was suspended in May due to multiple COVID-19 cases inside the bio-bubble.

    “I was a little disappointed because I felt I couldn’t capitalize on the starts that I got; however, it means that I had a lot of learnings from those outings and have prepared well for the second leg,” Manan said in a release issued by the franchise.

    A member of the Under-19 World Cup-winning team, Manan said time has come for the inaugural champions Rajasthan to reclaim the trophy and they have a lot of self-belief as they head into the T20 League.

    “As a group, we are all looking to win the trophy. It has been a long time since the franchise has won it,” said Manan, who was roped in by RR in 2019.

    “…the best thing is that everyone in our group believes that the team has the potential to make a mark once again. So, we’re aiming for the cup but will be mindful of taking it game by game.”

    Like million others, Manan too has the ambition to play for the country and said he intends to use the upcoming domestic season to make a case to the selectors.

    “Every player on the circuit has the same dream, and so do I. I definitely want to play for the Indian team. I think the upcoming domestic season again gives me a chance to get noticed,” said Manan, who has 1054 runs in 53 IPL matches at a strike-rate of over 130.

    “I’m playing for Chandigarh now and will be leading them, so I’m confident of taking my team to the latter stages of competitions through good performances, which will help me in making a case.”

    Manan’s teammate and friend Mayank Markande is hoping spin will again come into play just like last year with IPL back in UAE.

    “Our spinners had done a great job in the UAE last year, so I feel we’re back to utilizing our strengths well. We feel really confident going into this phase,” he said.

    Mayank couldn’t find a place in the Royals’ team during the first phase but he said he’s “happy to wait for his opportunities and understands that the conditions in India weren’t favouring the spinners too much” but knows that his “chance will come”.

    Talking about his transformation as a player, Mayank said: “When I first started playing IPL, I didn’t have much experience. But when I play now, I feel I’ve matured both as a player and as a person.

    “I think I’m mentally tough now and know how to deal with pressure, and bowl in challenging situations,” said the 23-year-old who had picked up 15 wickets in his debut IPL season in 2018.

    Having played one T20I for the Indian team, Mayank said he “dreams of making a comeback to the Indian team by performing well in the domestic circuit, and then consistently play for the nation at the highest level.”

  • Shreyas Iyer’s return will strengthen team, says Delhi Capitals batsman Shikhar Dhawan

    By PTI

    DUBAI: Delhi Capitals’ senior batsman Shikhar Dhawan on Sunday said the return of regular skipper Shreyas Iyer will strengthen the team further as it looks to resume its IPL campaign on a high note.

    The 2021 IPL was suspended in May due to multiple COVID cases inside its bio-bubble and the second leg of the lucrative tournament will begin on September 19 in the UAE.

    “We were in a certain flow in the first half of the season and then that flow was broken once the tournament was suspended,” Dhawan said in a release issued by the franchise.

    “So we have to rebuild our energy and get back on the flow we were in. The good thing is that our team is well balanced and Shreyas Iyer is back in the side as well, so our team is even stronger now.”

    Iyer had missed the first leg of the IPL after suffering a shoulder injury during the first ODI between India and England in March.

    The 35-year-old Dhawan, who is currently the highest run-getter in the IPL 2021 season with 380 runs in eight matches, said the team is focussed on its first match against Sunrisers Hyderabad.

    “It’s great to be back. There’s a great environment within the team. All the boys are working very hard and I am looking forward to the IPL season. I am very excited to play the upcoming matches,” said the opener, who has scored 3 fifties in the season so far.

    “It’s very important to start on a high note. We need to do well from the first match itself and therefore we are working very hard for our first match against Sunrisers Hyderabad. We have to bring our hard work into effect during matches and produce great results.”

    Delhi Capitals, the last year’s finalists, will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad on September 22.

  • IPL 2021: Delhi Capitals players from England arrive in Dubai

    By PTI

    DUBAI: The Delhi Capitals players who were part of the Indian squad for the Test series against England landed here safely on Sunday for the upcoming IPL, the franchise said.

    The 2021 IPL, which was suspended in May owing to a COVID-19 outbreak in its bubble, will resume in the UAE from September 19.

    The arriving players included Rishabh Pant, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ajinkya Rahane, Ishant Sharma, Axar Patel, Prithvi Shaw and Umesh Yadav and all of them underwent COVID-19 tests upon landing.

    The players will be serving a six-day hard quarantine as per IPL protocols, during which they will be tested thrice.

    Thereafter, the players will join the rest of the Delhi Capitals squad, who are already part of the bio-bubble.

    Delhi Capitals finished runners-up in the previous edition of the league last year, losing to Mumbai Indians in the summit showdown.

  • Living in luxurious prisons: Another extended bubble awaits jaded Team India players     

    Express News Service

    CHENNAI: For Indian players, the suspension of IPL in May had given a much-needed rest ahead of the England tour that they were most looking forward to. While they needed to undergo two weeks of hard quarantine before departing to London – followed by restricted movement for four days upon their arrival – they knew they would be free from the bubble life once they got past it.

    The bubble had become a non-negotiable part of their lives since the pandemic. Six Tests and more than a month’s gap between the World Test Championship final and the start of the Pataudi Trophy meant that a much-needed break was in store.

    With the tour lasting more than three months, players and support staff had all taken their families along, which they thought would keep them in the best shape possible, as living in a bio-secured environment was beginning to take a toll on many of them. Since the 2020 edition of IPL, which was held in the UAE, the Indian team has undergone 60 days of hard quarantine alone.

    After cricket resumed following the lockdown, no team has travelled as much as India and nobody has spent more days in quarantine than them. As one player put it, they had been living in ‘luxurious prisons’. They were meeting the same people day-in and day-out, with someone monitoring their movements at all times, and following numerous dos and don’ts while taking Covid tests at regular intervals. For some players, it had come to the point where they had watched almost all the top-rated shows on Netflix and Amazon and then started re-watching them thanks to boredom.

    ALSO READ | England vs India: Manchester Test cancellation all about money and IPL, says Michael Vaughan

    The England series was a lifeline in that regard. With the UK relaxing the lockdown rules and all the players fully vaccinated, they were allowed to move freely. Even the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) believed there was no reason to keep the teams under a bio-secure bubble for a five-match Test series. Despite Rishabh Pant and another member of the support staff testing Covid-19 positive before the first Test, it seldom created panic among the players.

    A highly competitive Test series played out with Manchester awaiting a grand finale before the worst fears came true. More than all the Covid concerns, the biggest fear among the players was the need to undergo hard quarantine should anyone test positive, which ultimately brought an early end to the series. 

    Let’s make it clear, going through hard quarantine once is tough, let alone six times as this team has done since August 2020, with the number of days varying from 14 days to seven. And in between all of this, they have played competitive cricket against top teams and emerged victorious in them.

    Though that stands as a testament to the team’s mental strength, what is also not lost is how tiresome it has become. “You are always living in this constant fear, where if anyone tests positive, you have to undergo isolation. Doing it once is fine, but I’ve honestly lost count of how many times we have done this in the past 12 months. If you keep pushing someone to the extreme, at some point they will break down. Some have family here, some don’t and right through this period, we have hardly been able to spend time at home. And you can’t play with fear,” a Team India member said.

    For Indian players, the culmination of the England tour means that the ‘freedom’ they enjoyed over the course of three months is gone. They will enter into a bubble-life for the IPL, which will be followed by the T20 World Cup that runs till November 14. It means they will celebrate Dussehra and Diwali in a closed environment and only in the company of their close family. 

    Some don’t even have that luxury. The tour of South Africa starts in Johannesburg on December 17, and is set to be played under a bio-secure environment. India have to finish the New Zealand series at home (three T20Is and two Tests) with less than a month’s gap in between.

    “The schedule for the New Zealand series is not yet finalised. There could be some changes as there is only a four-week window. It will be too demanding on the players unless two separate teams are announced. The Test series has to take place because it is under the WTC. The coming days will reveal a lot,” a BCCI official said. 

  • Hard quarantine awaits IPL players flying to UAE from Manchester

    Express News Service

    CHENNAI: After the cancellation of the fifth Test between England and India at Old Trafford in Manchester on Friday, Saturday was an extremely hectic day for all the IPL franchises. They were busy making arrangements to ensure that the India and England players, part of the IPL, join the respective franchises in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as early as possible. 

    While the Mumbai Indians trio of Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Suryakumar Yadav were flown to Abu Dhabi on a private charter flight on Saturday morning, a few players from other teams reached later in the day. 

    Originally, the IPL-bound players were supposed to travel to UAE from Manchester on September 15, a day after the scheduled close of the fifth Test. 

    Even though all the Indian players had tested negative for Covid in Manchester, Rohit, Bumrah and Suryakumar were tested upon arrival in Abu Dhabi too and returned negative results again. The players flying from Manchester have to undergo six days of hard quarantine before joining their teams in the IPL bubble. 

    “The trio (Rohit, Bumrah and Suryakumar), along with their families, arrived on Saturday morning. All members had returned negative RT-PCR results before departure. A new RT-PCR test was undertaken upon arrival at Abu Dhabi, which is negative as well,” the Mumbai Indians said in a statement on Saturday. 

    ALSO READ | England vs India: Manchester Test cancellation all about money and IPL, says Michael Vaughan

    The IPL-bound Indian players were initially supposed to enter a bubble in Manchester before the fifth Test in order to facilitate a bubble-to-bubble transfer in the UAE but that did not materialise given the circumstances. They will be tested thrice during the first six days of hard quarantine. 

    The resumption of the suspended IPL begins with Mumbai Indians taking on Chennai Super Kings in Dubai on September 19. CSK are currently training in Dubai, where they will be joined by five players from the India-England series: Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara, Shardul Thakur, Moeen Ali and Sam Curran. “The players are travelling on a commercial flight. They will be able to start training with the team only after completing quarantine,” a CSK official said. 

    Moeen and Curran might be heading to the IPL, but quite a few English players seem to be reluctant. Jonny Bairstow (Sunrisers Hyderabad), Dawid Malan (Punjab Kings) and Chris Woakes (Delhi Capitals) pulled out of the IPL on Saturday and there seems to be a concern that more England players could potentially pull out. Jos Buttler, Jofra Archer (injury) and Ben Stokes had already confirmed their unavailability for the resumption of the IPL. 

    A source close to Delhi Capitals indicated that there is uncertainty over Sam Billings and Tom Curran joining the franchise too. 

    “We are not sure whether Billings and Curran will join us. Woakes has pulled out citing bubble fatigue. He wanted to spend time with his family. We are looking at an Australian left-arm pacer as a possible replacement,” the source told The New Indian Express. 

  • Jonny Bairstow, Dawid Malan, Chris Woakes pull out of IPL with six-day quarantine rule being one of the reasons

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Sunrisers Hyderabad opener Jonny Bairstow, Punjab Kings batsman Dawid Malan and Delhi Capitals all-rounder Chris Woakes have pulled out of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) due to personal reasons.

    The England and India players were supposed to fly into UAE from Manchester together in a bubble to bubble transfer but COVID-19 cases in the visitors’ camp forced IPL teams to make their own arrangements.

    The fifth Test between India and England was also postponed indefinitely after a junior physio Yogesh Parmar tested positive for the virus ahead of the game.

    Other members of India’s support staff, including head Ravi Shastri, were already in quarantine after they tested positive for the virus during the fourth Test at the Oval.

    All players arriving in Dubai now have to do a six-day quarantine and that could be the reason behind Bairstow and Malan pulling out.

    A BCCI official told PTI that Bairstow and Malan the players won’t be part of the IPL resuming September 19.

    The Guardian reported on Woakes’ unavailability.

    “They won’t be boarding the flight to UAE. One of the reasons for their pull out is the six-day quarantine which they didn’t need to do earlier,” said the official.

    While Bairstow is a regular in the Sunrisers line-up, world number one T20 batsman Malan made his IPL debut with Kings earlier this year.

    Aiden Markram has been named his replacement.

    “Malan will be taking some time off to be with his family ahead of the #T20WorldCup and Ashes,” tweeted Punjab Kings.

    Bairstow had made 248 runs at strike rate of 141 plus in seven games earlier this season.

    Bairstow, Woakes and Malan were part of England’s Test squad in Manchester.

    Bubble life has taken a toll on players and with the T20 World Cup to follow in UAE, not playing the IPL would allow more family time to Bairstow, Woakes and Malan.

    All three are also part of England’s Ashes plans but the tour Down Under is also currently in doubt with Australia imposing some of the harshest restrictions in the world on incoming travellers in the COVID times.