XtraTime Web Desk: Former Indian international Gautam Gambhir believes that the pandemic situation will not create any impact on the cricketers. The two time IPL winning captain also stressed on the fact that every player and every support staff must follow all the instructions and guidelines to have a safe IPL.
“I don’t think that players will be afraid of it. It is important to be in the bio-secure bubble and follow the guidelines. Just because of one person, the tournament can’t be sacrificed. So it is important to follow the instructions and guidelines,” Gambhir told ANI.
This year, the 13th edition of Indian Premier League will start on 19th September will finish on 10th November. The matches are scheduled to take place in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Dubai. Even after taking all the safety measures, it’s unfortunate that 13 people in total are tested positive for Covid 19. BCCI has confirmed last month that 11 personnel and 2 players are affected.
Speaking on the chances of Delhi Capitals winning the tournament, Gambhir said that in the IPL, there is no certainty about anything and also raised a very strong point that the Indian players have not played the game for a very long time because of this pandemic.
“IPL is a kind of tournament where any team can beat the other team. The most important thing is how you start the journey. Also, the Indian players haven’t played any cricket for the last six months, so whether they are rusty or not will be known once the tournament starts,” he said.
Meanwhile, Yuvraj Singh has sent an e-mail to BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah seeking permission to come out of retirement and continue playing cricket domestically if not internationally.
Reflecting on the same, Gambhir said: “It’s his personal decision and each and everyone loves seeing Yuvi play. If he wants to play for Punjab, so why not! You can’t force a cricketer to start or to end; and if he wants to come back from retirement and play with motivation, he is most welcome.”
With inputs from ANI