IPL 2021: No contact-tracing bands, Bubble Integrity officers and 14 different bubbles to keep COVID at bay during UAE leg

IPL players will no longer have to make the extra effort of updating information on their contact-tracing band. Instead, Bubble Integrity officers will track the movements of the players and support staff during the second half of IPL 2021 slated to take place in the UAE from September 19 to October 15.

This is one of the pointers in the 46-page health advisory put forth by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the resumption of the cash-rich league. The reason to take the bluetooth-operated bands out of play was to spare the players that extra headache, and also because some of the devices malfunctioned during the first leg.

“The BCCI has decided to do away with the idea of wearing contact-tracing bands as not only is it sometimes difficult to feed information for sportspersons during the course of a tournament, but also, we had a few instances earlier this year when the devices couldn’t catch the movement of the players and the fact that they had left a certain location wasn’t updated and players and support staff realised this much later.

“As a result it has been decided that the Bubble Integrity officers present with the teams will keep a track of the movements and act accordingly if there is a case comes up during the course of the tournament. There will be four integrity officers with each team and will work in shifts to help with this,” sources told ANI.

The 14th edition of the IPL came to a screeching halt on May 4 after numerous COVID-19 cases were reported in multiple franchises. The remaining 31 games will now be played across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.

All bubble members will be required to travel in designated vehicles to minimize contact. Regarding players coming from the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), the Indian cricket board has given the green light for a bubble-to-bubble transfer, meaning all of them can join the IPL bubble straightaway.

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14 different bio-bubbles to be put in place for IPL 2021 2.0

6 separate bio-bubbles will be set up for the match officials and broadcast crew during IPL 2021 2.0

With just over a month to go for IPL 2021 to resume, many franchises have already started figuring out the logistics to reach the Emirates and start an early preparatory camp. However, they can join their respective bio-bubbles and start the proceedings only after being in hard quarantine for six days upon landing and undergoing RT-PCR tests on the first and last days.

“All franchise team members must quarantine in their hotel room for six full days before entering the bubble. Upon arrival and before commencing any group training activities, all team members who will be included in the bubble will follow the below-mentioned RT-PCR testing plan. A nasopharyngeal swab will be taken for testing. Test reports are available within 8-12 hours after sample collection,” the health directory stated.

Keeping stringent bubbles is key to avoiding a halt due to a COVID-19 outbreak. The second phase of IPL 2021 will see 14 different bio-bubbles within the restricted environment.

“Within the bio-secure environment, 14 bubbles will be created as mentioned below: Franchise teams and support staff – 8 Bubbles, Match Officials & Match Management Team – 3 Bubbles, Broadcast Commentators and crew – 3 Bubbles,” it added.

The Delhi Capitals (DC) sit pretty at the top of the table with six wins from eight games. The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are tied on 10 points apiece, while defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI), with four wins, complete the top four.