Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman might leave the IPL and return to Bangladesh earlier than expected. Bangladesh have imposed a 14-day quarantine for anyone travelling from India and South Africa. BCB will need to take special permission if they want to reduce the isolation period for the star duo.
Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman might need to leave the ongoing Indian Premier League and fly back to Bangladesh earlier than planned. And this is because of the newly imposed quarantine rule by the health ministry.
According to the new quarantine rule, which came into effect from the 1st of May, any travellers coming to Bangladesh, either from India or South Africa, will have to undergo quarantine for 14 days. The Bangladesh Cricket Board will have to seek special permission if they want the duo to undergo a reduced quarantine period.
However, the Bangladesh cricket team who are scheduled to fly back from Sri Lanka will not be expected to undergo the same quarantine. The BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said that they have asked the star duo playing the IPL to intimate the board about their plan for the next fortnight. Moreover, the board has also enquired on the quarantine protocol for the two players.
“We have asked them (Shakib and Mustafizur) to let us know what is their plan for the next 15 days while we have also asked the health ministry to know what kind of quarantine protocol the two players will need to follow,”
Nizamuddin Chowdhury, the BCB chief executive was quoted saying to Cricbuzz.
Shakib and Mustafizur (KKR and RR, respectively) were expected to return to Bangladesh on the 19th of May and join the ODI squad after three days of isolation. Bangladesh are scheduled to face Sri Lanka in a three-match ODI series, starting on the 23rd of May.
“If the health ministry suggests that they will have to follow 7 or 14 days quarantine, they will have to return earlier than scheduled from IPL. But before that, we have to know what rules will be in place for them. We are bound by the Bangladesh Government rules, and will take decisions according to the guideline provided by the government,”
Chowdhury further added.
Meanwhile, BCB are also figuring out the quarantine rules that the travellers from South Africa need to follow. Head coach Russell Domingo and fielding coach Ryan Cook are going to fly to Bangladesh from the Rainbow Nation and will join the Bangladesh side ahead of the ODI series against Sri Lanka.
Last year, the BCB had been successful in their quest to reduce the quarantine period for the overseas coaching staff and cricketers. However, the chances of that seem to be bleak this time due to the intensity of the second wave of the COVID-19 virus.
