The 21 Australian and English players arriving at the UAE from the United Kingdom to take part in the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League, all of them will be in just 36 hours of quarantine instead of the earlier prescribed six days.
“Yes, I can confirm that all the English and Australian players have to now undergo 36-hour quarantine instead of six days. The matter has been sorted and most of the teams will now have their big stars available from the first game itself,” a senior IPL functionary privy to the development told PTI.
Steve Smith, David Warner, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler will reach UAE on late Thursday night from the UK and on arrival and will undergo the COVID-19 test.
“They have undergone one rapid test before boarding (the flight) and will undergo another on arrival. Otherwise, the robust testing protocols will be followed as usual. The rationale behind the move is that all the players are entering from one bio-bubble to another,” the veteran BCCI official said.
“The BCCI did a great job in reducing the quarantine period to 36 hours. This means teams like Chennai Super Kings (Josh Hazlewood and Tom Curran), Rajasthan Royals (Smith, Buttler, Archer) will have all their players available from their first game. Ditto for Kings XI Punjab that has Glenn Maxwell in its roster and Delhi Capitals that has Alex Carry,” a franchise official said.
