IPL 2021: League to go on despite early exit of players due to COVID-19 surge, insists BCCI

Despite Covid clouds loom over the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as ace India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and some Australian players have pulled out from the cash-rich league, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has insisted that the tournament will go on.

Ashwin, 34, had decided to take a break to support his family, who is currently “putting up a fight against COVID-19” and he wants to support them. The star spinner however, said that he hopes to return to the side “if things go in the right direction”.

Prior to Ashwin, Andrew Tye of Rajastan Royals and the Aussie duo of Kane Richardson and Adam Zampa (both playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore) withdrew from the ongoing season citing “personal reasons”.

Tye on the other hand, had said that he feared getting locked out of his own country owing to mounting quarantine cases from India.

“I just thought to try and get on the front foot and get home before I got locked out of the country…think I’ve had 11 days at home out of the bubble since August, so for me I just wanted to get home,” Tye was quoted as saying by ‘SEN Radio’.

Despite all such happenings in the league, BCCI, on its part, insisted that the league will continue and it wouldn’t come in the way of those wanting to leave.

“As of now, IPL is going ahead. Obviously, if anyone wants to leave, that’s perfectly fine,” a senior Board has reportedly said.

Meanwhile, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) mentor David Hussey acknowledged that the Aussie players, who are featuring in the lucrative league’s 14th season, are a “bit nervous” about getting back home in the wake of rising number of Covid-19 cases in India.

“Everyone is sort of a bit nervous about whether they can get back into Australia. I dare say there will be a few other Australians a bit nervous about getting back into Australia,” Hussey, a former Australia international, told the Sydney Morning Herald.

While Zampa was pocketed for Rs 1.5 crore, Rs 4 crore was paid for Richardson at the players’ mini-auction.

News Desk

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