Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021: Staff members of Chennai hotel test positive for COVID-19, players 'safe'

Days ahead of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament, nearly 20 staff members of a hotel in Chennai have tested positive for COVID-19. Chennai is serving as the base for three participating teams - Manipur, Meghalaya, and Mizoram.

Luckily, the cricketers have not been affected and are said to be ‘safe’ as they were placed in a bio-secure bubble created specifically for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

A Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) official has informed that there is nothing to worry about as the players have been placed in a bio-secure environment. The official was quoted as saying by ANI:

"The three teams are safe and there is nothing to worry about. The testing has been carried out on the staff and it isn't necessary that they have even come near the players because as you saw during the IPL as well, the board is very strict with bubbles, and the staff serving the players had already been tested before the teams arrived and have stayed separately."

The official reassured and added further:

“Even then, if something does come up later, we will act promptly. For now, everything is under control.”

Big hits 💥Accurate yorkers 🎯@TusharD_96 is prepping just fine for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 👌🏻#YehHaiNayiDilli pic.twitter.com/SQtUPfLg8v

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) January 4, 2021

Teams get set for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

The teams taking part in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy gathered in their bio-secure hubs on Saturday and have begun their quarantine.

After clearing the first COVID-19 test, they will take the second one on Wednesday. Only on returning negative from the second Coronavirus test can the teams begin practice from Friday.

While Chennai will host the Plate group matches, Bangalore, Kolkata, Vadodara, Indore, and Mumbai are the venues for the Elite group games.

Devdutt Padikkal, Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav will be among the star attractions of the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

“There is nothing stronger than a broken man ,who has rebuilt himself..” Thnks a lot for all the Supoort nd love ..#Gods grace #humbled #cricket #keralacricketassociation #bcci #grateful #respect #love #bestisyettocome pic.twitter.com/U0xyEg9XHu

— Sreesanth (@sreesanth36) December 30, 2020

The tournament will also mark the comeback of former India pacer S. Sreesanth to competitive cricket.

The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy gets underway on January 10. The Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad will host the quarter-finals (Jan 26-27), semi-finals (Jan 29), and the final (Jan 31).