IPL match affected - Aussie ban return of their Nationals from India !!

From 9^th April 2021 till date – daily routine has been watching IPL for atleast 4 hours – it has been such a great entertainment ! .. .. …… but sadly – not today.

Yesterday – when many were busy seeing Assembly election results - Mayank Agarwal on his captaincy debut scored an unbeaten 99 which was  60% of Punjab Kings' runs in fewer than half the balls but that  was not enough to push his side to a total that would challenge Delhi Capitals in the chase. Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan broke the back of the chase in the Powerplay, and Dhawan went on to seal the win, reclaiming the orange cap as he did so. A sixth win in eight matches took capitals to the top of the table.

There was no KL Rahul who had an emergency surgery for  appendicitis.  The Kings flew Rahul on a charter flight to Mumbai, where he underwent laparoscopic appendectomy, a minimally invasive surgery. The doctors are understood to have told the Kings that Rahul would be able to restart all activity after a week's rest. The Kings will now consult with the IPL to determine Rahul's quarantine period and other protocols that would need to be followed in order for him to re-enter the team bubble and start playing again.

The security of bio-bubble would be further discussed and redefined as today’s match between  Kolkata Knight Riders and the Royal Challenges Bangalore in Ahmedabad has been rescheduled after the   Varun Chakravarthy and seam bowler Sandeep Warrier tested positive for Covid-19. This is the first instance of positive Covid-19 cases within an IPL team bubble since the 2021 season started. It is believed that Chakravarthy recently left the IPL's biosecure bubble through the official green channel to get a scan on an injured shoulder and that is where he might have been exposed.   Three members of the Chennai Super Kings' IPL contingent - chief executive Kasi Viswanathan, bowling coach L Balaji, and a bus cleaner - have tested positive for Covid-19. It is understood that the others in the group, which is currently in Delhi, have cleared their tests, which were conducted on Sunday. So the match involving CSK would go on as scheduled on 5^th May

Contrary to what Punjab did to KL – flying him by chartered fight – Australia has reacted differently, very strongly.  There is a travel ban against their entry back to their Nation !!

The travel ban preventing Australians in India from returning home could be subject to legal challenges, with lawyers and academics believing the extraordinary measure may breach the law.  Scott Morrison’s government has been widely condemned for its “outrageous” decision to introduce fines of up to $66,600 or five years in prison, or both, for anyone defying a travel ban preventing Australians returning home from India. The travel ban officially begins on Monday, in what is believed to be the first time Australia has banned its own citizens from returning home.

Griffith University human rights law Prof Sarah Joseph said the ban, implemented under the Biosecurity Act, must satisfy section 477 of that act, which states that the measure has to be “appropriate” and “no more restrictive or intrusive than is required in the circumstances”. If I was in that situation I would be thinking about challenging it.  She said that the relative success of Australia’s hotel quarantine program in restricting the spread of Covid-19, compared with the desperate situation in India, among other factors, could help a prospective litigant frame a case that the travel ban was inappropriate. “It’s a pretty extraordinary measure, and any extraordinary measure runs the risk of being considered disproportionate,” she said.

Scott Morrison has told Australian cricketers playing in the Indian Premier League they will not be able to return home ahead of other Australians currently stranded in the country, after Western Australia’s premier, Mark McGowan, suggested it was “galling” the cricketers were even allowed to fly to the subcontinent during the pandemic. The prime minister said  that  the Australian cricketers would have to use their own resources to return to Australia as he announced a temporary ban on all direct flights from India until 15 May. There had been speculation Cricket Australia might have to charter a flight if travel restrictions extended beyond the end of the IPL season. Morrison suggested the cricketers would not be prioritised when government-organised repatriation flights – which were also suspended on Tuesday – ultimately resumed. He insisted Australians seeking to return from India would be assessed “on vulnerability”.

 “They have travelled there privately,” the prime minister said when asked if the cricketers could be prioritised when flights resumed. “This wasn’t part of an Australian tour. They’re under their own resources and they’ll be using those resources too, I’m sure, to see them return to Australia in accordance with their own arrangements.”  A total of 36 Australians remain in India – 14 players, 11 coaches, four commentators, two umpires and five support staff, plus one New Zealand commentator who is an Australian resident.  Among the playing group are star players Glenn Maxwell, Pat Cummins, Steve Smith and David Warner, while the likes of Ricky Ponting, Simon Katich, David Hussey and Lisa Sthalekar are also in India working for clubs or in commentating roles.

Not all players are planning to return to Australia at the end of the tournament, with a number hoping to fly on to different destinations across the globe to play in other cricket competitions.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar
3^rd May 2021