The Safety Of The Players Is The BCCI’s First Priority:
Indian cricket board (BCCI) is working on its players’ isolation camp to resume cricket in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic. The media has found that the board is looking for a place outside defined containment areas to start training after two months with their senior players or team management or the other staff.
The National Cricket Academy (NCA) has all the training facilities in Bengaluru but Covid-19 cases remain in the town. In a quarantined and stable environment, the aim is to have a set of players, coaching staff, and workers-like catering, safety, and home-keeping. The BCCI is also working on the concept of other alternative stadiums that the central government will find to be ‘safe.’
“Player health is the priority for the Board of Directors. We will have to work on the infrastructure and check if Bengaluru is secure enough or not. If the area doesn’t seem fine, we’ll look at areas outside containment zones in the region. Now the camp is being sanitized. There is an option to open local stadiums for senior players,” a BCCI official said.
“To deal with any issues related to players, team management, and the cricket operations teams will be in contact,” the officer said.
BCCI Needs Government Directions And Will Adhere To It:
It is well understood by the media that everybody who has chosen for the camp, from players to general personnel-must clear about health conditions and does not go outside the camp.
However, it’s hard to get the camp going in the near future by looking at the things. It could take more than a month and depend on the government’s relaxation after 18 May.
The travel schedules and freedom of movement will need to be taken into account. The medical staff is also in the loop, the official said. BCCI needs to follow government policy guidelines.
The upcoming Sri Lanka tour of India at the end of June looks very unlikely, given the circumstances. Players would have to go back into the groove for an international tournament for at least one and a half months. The ICC T20 World Cup or a reduced IPL is possible. Right now there is no clarity.
