In a massive blow to the Chennai Super Kings, veteran hitter Suresh Raina withdrew from the upcoming tournament in the UAE on Saturday. The CEO of the franchise had confirmed Raina’s return to India, however, he refrained from revealing the reason behind the removal of the batsman. Sources have now reported that the CSK star pulled out of the 2020 IPL due to the COVID threat that hit the franchise on Friday when 12 members were infected with the virus.
Why did Raina withdraw from IPL 2020?
Raina has traveled back to India to be with his wife and two children when the virus hit the franchise just 3 weeks before IPL 2020 began. Aside from this, Raina was also grieving the loss of her uncle, who died in a robbery 10 days ago. During the incident, four of her family members were also injured, adding to the reason for Raina’s return to India.
As the threat of the virus looms over CSK, veteran Harbhajan Singh, who has not yet traveled to the UAE, is likely to skip the tournament. Sources have added that Roulette has doubts about whether to travel to the Middle East and join the franchise or not. Due to the threat of the virus, CSK’s quarantine period has also been extended by one more week.
READ | BCCI Issues Statement As COVID Reaches IPL 2020; Says all infected staff are asymptomatic
Earlier on Friday, PTI reported that 12 members of the MS Dhoni-led franchise had tested positive for the new Coronavirus. On Saturday, another player in the franchise had contracted the infection. The BCCI confirmed on Saturday that 13 people have been infected with the virus, including two players. The BCCI has also reported that a total of 1988 RT-PCR tests were performed between August 20 and 28 and that all affected personnel and their close contacts are ‘asymptomatic’ and have been isolated.
READ | A star who will miss you: Shane Watson’s message to Suresh Raina as she leaves IPL 2020
BCCI emissions statement
“The Cricket Control Board in India (BCCI) has implemented strict health and safety protocols for the 2020 Dream11 Indian Premier League season, which is scheduled to begin on September 19 in the UAE. Consequently, upon landing in In the UAE, All participants have followed a mandatory testing and quarantine program. A total of 1,988 COVID RT-PCR tests were carried out on all participant groups in the UAE between 20 and 28 August. These groups include players, support staff, team management, BCCI staff, IPL operational team, hotel and ground transportation staff, ”BCCI said in a statement on Saturday.
READ | Suresh Raina to miss IPL 2020; CSK issues statement upon return to India
Complete squad of CSK 2020
Narayan Jagadeesan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, KM Asif, Ravindra Jadeja, M Vijay, MS Dhoni, Josh Hazlewood, Kedar Jadhav, Harbhajan Singh, Karn Sharma, Piyush Chawla, Ambati Rayudu, Imran Tahir, Deepak Chahar, Bravo Fard, du Plessisne Lungi Ngidi, Sam Curran, Monu Kumar, Shane Watson, Sai Kishore
READ | Jason Roy withdraws from IPL 2020, Delhi Capitals brings Australian Daniel Sams as replacement
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