The Covid situation in India over the last two months has deteriorated. IPL 2021 has come under immense scrutiny in the last few days as death numbers and cases pile up across the country.
As of now, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has no plans to halt the tournament. After playing the first third of IPL 2021 in Chennai and Mumbai, the tournament moves to New Delhi and Ahmedabad. Meanwhile, The New Indian Express has decided to suspend its IPL coverage, while thousands of people pilloried the league on social media.
Olympic gold-winning Indian Shooter Abhinav Bindra has delivered a scathing attack on IPL. He has urged the officials to be aware of the situation outside their bubble. Bindra also wants the coverage of the tournament to be muted.
“Cricketers and officials can’t just live in their own bubble, and be totally deaf or blind to whatever is going outside. I can only imagine that while you’re having these IPL games, outside the stadium you have ambulances going to hospitals. I don’t know how the coverage on TV is but I would really appreciate if it’s a little bit muted in nature.”
Bindra urges cricketers to take a stand and help the people in this situation as he believes that the cricketers are privileged to play IPL 2021 during the pandemic. Delhi Capitals have been promoting a plasma donation drive, while RCB and Sunrisers released a video to create awareness about the situation.
Meanwhile, many fans believe IPL is a distraction for millions of people during the pandemic and is helping the people cope and have good moments. The tournament is played inside Bio-Bubble and the players have to go through regular covid tests in order to ensure their safety. It is highly unlikely that the tournament will be called off and is all set to be played on the scheduled dates with the Final on 30th May.