Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the schedule for the Indian Premier League (IPL) went for a toss. The much-awaited cricket league got indefinitely postponed due to the lockdown imposed in India to curb the spread of the COVID-19 infection.
A while back the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that the 13th season of the IPL will be staged in the UAE owing to the rapid rise in coronavirus cases in India. As soon as the official statement came out, the eight franchises began with their practice session to gear up the players after a break of almost 4 months.
However, team India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja will be missing out Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) six-day conditioning camp ahead of the team’s departure to UAE for IPL 2020. The practice camp is scheduled between August 15 and 20 in Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Apart from Jadeja, other key players of CSK including skipper MS Dhoni, Harbhajan Singh, Suresh Raina, and Ambati Raydu will participate in the camp. Speaking of Jadeja’s absence, CSK Chief Executive Officer Kasi Viswanathan said, “He (Ravindra Jadeja) has personal commitments.
Viswanathan further added that Jadeja will be joining the rest of the squad in time to board the flight from Chennai to Dubai on August 21.
CSK will be conducting the camp behind closed doors at the MA Chidambaram stadium. Alongside the players, bowling coach L Balaji will be the only member of the coaching staff present at the camp.
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CSK Head Coach Stephen Fleming and assistant coach Michael Hussey are likely to join the squad directly in the UAE by August 22.
The Proteas players- Faf du Plessis and Lungi Ngidi will join the CSK squad after September 1. Speaking of spinner Imran Tahir, he will be joining the squad after taking part in the Caribbean Premier League in Trinidad.
IPL was originally slated to begin from March 29 but now will be played from September 19 to November 10 in the United Arab Emirates.