Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batting coach Mike Hussey will have to stay in India and under the mandatory quarantine period after being test positive for Covid-19, but the other Australian players and staff members involved in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 are ready to fly back to their homes via either the Maldives or Sri Lanka.
After being test positive of the dreaded virus during a chat with Sydney Mornin Herald, Hussey said, “I am OK.” Mike Hussey was the latest in the IPL bio-bubble to test positive for COVID-19, after several players and staff members getting infected by the virus, leading to the tournament being indefinitely postponed. Fellow CSK coach Lakshmipathy Balaji also tested positive for COVID-19.
The 38 other Australians – which includes players, staff, and commentators – will be flying to either the Maldives or Sri Lanka, from where they can fly back to Australia after completing their quarantine periods, with direct travel from India to Australia banned by the Australian government.
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As per the quotes in Sydney Morning Herald, Australian Cricketers’ Association chief Todd Greenberg said, “His (Hussey’s) symptoms are relatively mild, so he’s in for a stint of isolation in his hotel for at least 10 days. This is a two-step process. The first step is getting them out of India and the next step is getting them safely home. We’re still waiting to hear what the government are going to do post-May 15 and once we have that confirmation we’ll put the next start step in place.”
Earlier, Cricket Australia’s interim chief Nick Hockley had said that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is leaving no stone unturned in making sure that the Australian players home safe.
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Hockley said, “What the BCCI is working to do is to move the entire cohort out of India where they will wait until it’s possible to return to Australi. The BCCI has been working on a range of options. That’s now narrowed down to the Maldives and Sri Lanka. The BCCI is committed not only to the first move but also to putting on a charter to bring them back to Australia.”
