IPL 2021 postponed indefinitely after several players test positive for coronavirus

It has finally happened. The IPL 2021 has been suspended indefinitely after the coronavirus surge in the last couple of days. The final straw that broke the camel’s back was Amit Mishra and Wriddhiman Saha testing positive for the coronavirus. Saha’s positive result meant that the Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Mumbai Indians game was impacted. The Chennai Super Kings vs Rajasthan Royals clash was already postponed due to three CSK members testing positive. According to the BCCI SOP, if any member of the team tests positive, the entire side will have to isolate for six days.

Delhi Capitals canceled their practice after Amit Mishra tested positive for the coronavirus. The situation started deteriorating when Varun Chakravarthy and Sandeep Warrier of the Kolkata Knight Riders tested positive for COVID-19. This forced the match against Royal Challengers Bangalore to be postponed. In a press release issued by the BCCI, it said, “The BCCI does not want to compromise on the safety of the players, support staff and the other participants involved in organising the IPL. This decision was taken keeping the safety, health and well-being of all the stakeholders in mind.”

Getting back to families

The BCCI has also stated that they will ensure that all the players and staff come back home to families. “The BCCI will do everything in its powers to arrange for the secure and safe passage of all the participants in IPL 2021,” the release said.

According to a report by Inside Sport, one BCCI official admitted that the situation was very tricky. “We are completely shocked by positive cases in KKR camp. How and when that happened is yet to be ascertained. These KKR players must have met others and so is CSK support staff members. Though nothing is discussed officially as yet, but like this we have to postponed IPL 2021 as this menace has gripped the entire nation,” the official said.

Deteriorating situation

This is a similar situation to what the Pakistan Super League underwent. In that tournament, seven players tested positive as the bio-bubble was breached. The Pakistan Super League has to be rescheduled to June.

With three consecutive matches being postponed, the BCCI had no option but to indefinitely suspend the tournament. According to a report in Cricbuzz, the top brass of the BCCI was to meet to take a final call on the fate of the tournament with rescheduling the entire tournament being one of the agenda points.

The BCCI is planning to move the entire IPL to Mumbai. The move could happen this weekend. Mumbai has three cricket grounds which will make travel less problematic. The next leg of the IPL will take place in Bengaluru and Kolkata. However, Bengaluru is a current COVID-19 hotspot with a large number of cases. In Kolkata, the situation is no worse. The active coronavirus cases in West Bengal and Karnataka has forced the BCCI and the franchises to apparently reconsider travel.

There are reports that the final could be extended beyond May 30 to the first week of June. With one match being postponed, there might be multiple double-headers in place for the coming weeks.