The Great IPL Bubble Burst
On May 4th 2021, the BCCI and the IPL Governing Council (GC) announced the postponement of the Vivo IPL 2021 until further notice. It took them 26 days to realize that it was best to put off an entertainment show in India. To be precise, there were too many red flags for them to proceed with the Indian Premier League this year.
Why the IPL shutdown?
Well, it’s because of the pandemic, dummy!
After a dull-yet-smooth campaign of 29 matches, the IPL discovered its first Covid cases in two camps — the Chennai Super Kings, and the Kolkata Knight Riders. The Chennai camp reported that three of its members have been tested positive, including their bowling coach Lakshmipathy Balaji.
The Kolkata camp informed that two of its cricketers — Varun Chakravarthy and Sandeep Warrier — were tested positive during the third set of Covid tests. Now, as per the SOP laid down by the IPL Governing Council,
1. If a member of a team is tested positive, the entire team should self-isolate immediately
2. The mandatory period of self-isolation is six (6) days
3. The team will undergo Covid-19 swab tests on a daily basis
However, the situation escalated yesterday mid-day when Wriddhiman Saha and Amit Mishra of the Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Delhi Capitals respectively contracted the Covid-19 virus.
With four out of eight teams under a 6-day quarantine, the IPL is in a crisis. As a result, the not-so-sudden Covid outbreak among the IPL teams compelled the BCCI to postpone the tournament indefinitely.
Board of Control For Cricket in India postponed IPL 2021 indefinitely.
And here is the catch. The BCCI and the IPL GC did not cancel the tournament. They postponed it. This is what the IPL Media Advisory declared in their press release:
These are difficult times, especially in India and while we have tried to bring in some positivity and cheer, however, it is imperative that the tournament is now suspended and everyone goes back to their families and loved ones in these trying times. The BCCI will do everything in its powers to arrange for the secure and safe passage of all the participants in IPL 2021.
IPL Media Advisory, May 4 2021
How did all this happen?
To give you a glimpse of how poorly the BCCI handled the Covid-19 protocols this year, here is a table:-
- Venues
2020 (UAE): Only three venues — Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah. Before the league, there were 674 new cases in UAE then. Though the IPL boosted the number to 1000, the figure remained constant throughout the tournament.
2021 (India): Six venues — Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, and Delhi. Almost each of the metros is the unofficial hotspots of the Covid-19 transmission.
2. Travel
2020 (UAE): The venues are in close proximity. Therefore, the bus is the best option for commuting.
2021 (India): The venues are distant from each other. So, airlines are your only option and currently the worst alternative, as the chances of transmission are high.
3. Stadiums
2020 (UAE): The stadium officials were aware of the Do’s and Don’t’s. Strict adherence to the Covid protocols was made sure at the venues. As a result, the UAE cricket board made separate zones for players and match officials.
2021 (India): Some groundsmen at Wankhede Stadium were tested positive, resulting in a hasty search for replacements by the Mumbai Cricket Association.
4. Quarantine Protocols
2020 (UAE): All teams had to arrive in the UAE by 21st August for the 14-day quarantine.
2021 (India): The Quarantine period has been reduced to 7 days.
5. Covid-Management
2020 (UAE): Weeks before the league, all team officials had to participate in a virtual call to get acquainted with the Covid-19 regulations.
2021 (India): No such event was organized.
6. Bubble Integrity
2020 (UAE): Not necessary, as the players’ movements were monitored via a GPS-tracking fob device.
2021 (India): This time, each team required to have 4 Bubble Integrity Managers to monitor their movements. After all, human performance can sometimes be problematic.
Movement Trackers
2020 (UAE): All the players had to wear a GPS-tracking fob device like a pendant, to monitor their movements within their bubble.
2021 (India): Nope. Nothing. Nada.
What about the Overseas Players?
Now, here comes the fun part. The part where BCCI is responsible for the safety of all cricketers and match officials participating in the IPL.
As part of the infamous Big Three of international cricket, India is undoubtedly rich. Also, the BCCI organizes the world’s biggest (and most profitable) cricket league in the world every year. So, it is of course their responsibility to make sure that all the players and officials safely return home as India battles the second wave of the pandemic.
Let’s look at the “foreign policy” of some of the cricket boards:-
a. India is already on the UK’s “red list”. This means the English cricketers have to be on a 10-day quarantine in a hotel before they can return.
b. South Africa only requires a Covid-Negative certificate for each of its players and officials.
c. The players from New Zealand are to undergo a 14-day quarantine period before coming home
However, not all countries are willing to cooperate. For example, Australia. Since all flights from India to Australia have been banned till May 15, India had previously suggested a detour for them. After the IPL concluded, the BCCI had recommended that the Australians board the same charter flight with the Indians (for the World Test Championship) and the English to the UK. After that, the Australians could return to their homeland from England.
Unfortunately, the postponement has forced the BCCI to send the Australians off to the Maldives to wait out the ban. Okay. Wow. That is not good.
Any hope for a resumption this year?
The BCCI has been contemplating hosting the remainder of this year’s IPL in one of the two windows. After all, how can you let go of your annual money-minting machine?
September 2021
Since almost every international cricketer wanted to participate in the IPL to prepare themselves for the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, September would be a great choice for the BCCI to resume the tournament. That way, the players will be able to be in sync with the T20 format as well as avoid international flights.
After the ICC T20 World Cup 2021
Some speculations suggest that the ICC T20 World Cup this year will conclude in mid-November. So, the BCCI might consider the possibility of hosting the remaining league matches and playoffs then and conclude by the third week of December. Accordingly, the Indian team will have enough time to fly off to South Africa for their bilateral series.
However, all these will depend on whether the cricket boards overseas are willing and daring enough to risk the safety of their players and officials. So, India has to work on regaining their trust. And it will be a tough job for sure.
Conclusion
Conducting the Vivo IPL 2021 amid the second wave of the pandemic was the worst decision by the BCCI. It exemplified the board’s incompetence and sheer negligence towards the minute aspects of security and safety for all. Most of all, it also proved the board’s and the cricketers’ lack of morale in this case.
A country that is currently unable to fulfill the supply of oxygen cylinders, ventilators, and basic medicines at hospitals went ahead with the IPL for the sake of “entertainment”. That is the kind of audacity the Indian cricket board and the participating players displayed in the course of the tournament.
It is not about broadcasting the same tapes over and over again, with commentators and players telling you to wear a mask and observe the physical distance. It is about the need of the hour, and that is the basic requirement of humanity on the part of the players and officials. The lack of morale of the cricketers and their apparent oblivion to the current scenario is equally disgusting and agonizing.
First published on Walledsports.
