COVID-19 threat is looming large over IPL 2021. A day after KKR-RCB match was postponed following 2 positive cases among players, the CSK-RR game scheduled to be played in Delhi on Wednesday was also rescheduled. Chennai Super Kings bowling coach L Balaji and another member of the support staff tested positive for COVID-19 in Delhi. There is talk of the matches being shifted to Mumbai but rescheduling a tight IPL programme amid the pandemic is a nightmare.

Since the IPL is being conducted under strict bio bubble rules with players interacting closely with each other, the chances are more cases may emerge. The magnitude of the problem will be known in the next couple of days, which will then decide the future of the tournament.

On Tuesday two KKR players spinner Varun Chakravarthy and pacer Sandeep Warrior tested positive as did Chennai Super Kings bowling coach L Balaji. While the entire KKR team has gone for a six-day hard quarantine, starting Sunday, Balaji, who is a regular feature in the Chennai Super Kings dug-out has gone into isolation after returning with two RT-PCR positives on Monday.

“Balaji’s positive report is certainly a cause of concern although the CSK players have tested negative. But normally, a lot of people start showing symptoms from the fifth or sixth day. There are discussions whether it is safe to go ahead with the next two matches in Delhi,” a senior BCCI source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

The current IPL, being held in the middle of a pandemic, has attracted a lot of criticism on social media with users attacking the organisers for risking so many lives by holding the tournament.