IPL in UAE: Covid subs, be prepared

Dubai - With the tournament working under an air-tight bio-secure bubble, these unsold players could come into the picture

Sometimes in life, it is all about getting another chance and for a host of cricketers from India and around the globe, this season's IPL could be getting that lost opportunity.
After the tournament was given a new lease of life by the UAE, this band of cricketers, both domestic and international, have been thrown a lifeline too.
As has been with every auction, many raked in the moolah and went for top bucks, while many a player couldn't find a suitable buyer across the eight franchises during the auction held in Kolkata last December.
But with the tournament working under an air-tight bio-secure bubble, these unsold players could come into the picture.
If, by chance, a player tests positive for Covid, teams are allowed coronavirus replacements. It means that as the eight teams start arriving in the UAE, these unsold players could do well to be prepared to fly out in the eventuality of a player contracting the virus.
Batsmen like Evin Lewis, Colin Ingram, Martin Guptill, Hanuman Vihari, Cheteshwar Pujara, Manoj Tiwary and many others, bowlers Tim Southee, Adam Zampa, Mark Wood, Alzarri Joseph, Vinay Kumar, Mustafizur Rahman among others, all-rounders Ben Cutting, Carlos Brathwaite, Jason Holder, Yusuf Pathan, Colin de Grandhomme, Colin Munro, Stuary Binny and many others, could be heading to the UAE.
The IPL had seen many injury replacements over the years but this will be a first where there would be Covid-19 replacements. 

• IPL 2019