The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will assist transfer Australia’s total IPL “cohort” to the Maldives or Sri Lanka forward of the weekend, Cricket Australia (CA) introduced on Wednesday.
India’s governing physique for cricket has been working to repatriate all of the gamers, help workers, umpires and commentators as shortly and safely as attainable, CA’s interim chief govt Nick Hockley instructed reporters throughout a press convention in Sydney.
“So what we’re working to do and what the BCCI are working to do, and they’ve been incredibly cooperative, is working to move the entire cohort out of India,” Hockley stated.
He added that gamers would wait exterior India for approval to head house, as Australia has banned vacationers who’ve been within the nation throughout the previous two weeks.
In Australia, anybody who has been in India 14 days prior to Monday is now blocked from coming into the nation, together with Australian residents, below the nation’s Biosecurity Act.
Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison denied that the ban on arrivals is racist and performed down the prospect of jail time for these caught breaking the foundations.
On Monday, round 9,000 Australians in India have been registered with the federal government as wanting to return to Australia.
“If our Government cared for the safety of Aussies they would allow us to get home,” tweeted Slater on Monday. “It’s a disgrace!! Blood on your hands PM. How dare you treat us like this. How about you sort out the quarantine system. I had government permission to work on the IPL but I now have government neglect.
India has accounted for 25% of the world’s Covid-19 deaths reported in the past week, according to the World Health Organization.
“In good spirits”
A handful of IPL participants have recently tested positive for Covid-19, including Chennai Super Kings’ Australian batting coach Mike Hussey and two non-playing members of the team.
Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) chief executive Todd Greenberg said that as far as he knows, Hussey was the only Australian in the IPL to contract the virus.
“We’ve spoken to Mike right now. He’s okay, he is in good spirits”, said Greenberg, who added that Hussey has relatively mild symptoms, and will be in isolation in his hotel room for at least 10 days in India.
Hussey’s diagnosis comes despite the IPL’s strict bio-bubble arrangement, where teams moved across the country for games and on occasion, wore head-to-toe PPE for internal flights.
Prior to the IPL’s suspension, Australians Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa and Kane Richardson cut short their IPL stints to return home last week.
“We’re all hoping the scenario improves”
As the number of Covid-19 cases in India surpassed 20 million on Monday, Hockley urged the cricketing community to rally and support the country.
“We’re all hoping the scenario improves,” he said on Wednesday.
Ahead of the press conference a number of Australian cricketers including Pat Cummins and Brett Lee donated money towards medical supplies in India. Likewise, CA partnered with the ACA to raise much needed funds for UNICEF Australia’s India Covid-19 Crisis Appeal.
“We have been all deeply moved by the feelings expressed and donations given by Pat Cummins and Brett Lee over the previous week,” said Hockley in a statement.
“Australians and Indians share a particular bond and, for a lot of, our mutual love of cricket is central to that friendship,” Hockley added.
Welcoming the partnership with Australian cricket, UNICEF Australia chief govt Tony Stuart stated he was moved by the cricketing neighborhood’s response to the crisis.
“We thank Australian Cricket for appearing now as it’s management like this which is able to assist beat COVID for all,” Stuart added.
Looking ahead
During the press conference on Wednesday, Hockley said the International Cricket Council (ICC) is looking at contingency options for the T20 World Cup, which India is set to host in October this year.
He added that the BCCI has also pledged to arrange a charter plane to bring Australian cricketers home, refusing to speculate if the league could resume this year.
“I believe it is untimely to speculate on that,” Hockley said.
“At the second, the BCCI are very targeted on getting all of the gamers, not simply the Australians, house protected,” Hockley added.
“The public will see our greatest Australian cricketers as virtually superheroes … however they’re human beings,” Greenberg added in settlement.
