As IPL 2020 is all set to kick off from September 19th and will carry on until November 8th, the discussions about the safety regarding the tournament are slowly gaining traction. The crux of the deliberations is shifting from the players and the debutants to how safe the players will be inside the bio-secure bubble which has been proposed to ensure the security of the players from this menacing virus.
The bio-secure bubble is something that is entirely new to the concept of cricket. This has been devised in order to create an invisible shield that will be totally conceptual to protect the players from contracting the virus. Given the length of the tournament and the mélange of players that comes in to play this domestic extravaganza, even if anyone player contracts the virus, it can be utter devastation.
In this piece, we will explore the concept of the bio-secure bubble which will be cricket’s biggest line of defense in this situation of uncertainty.
What goes inside a bio-secure bubble?
Nothing unauthorized! Absolutely nothing that is unauthorized! This is like a dome that Stephen King conceived for his illustrious novel, ‘Under the Dome’ in which only the ones for whom an ID card has been issued, can enter. The current model of a bio-secure bubble was implemented for the West Indies and England series and now is also being put in place for ongoing Pakistan versus England series.
The players, management and the staff authorized to carry on the regular business are the only ones who can step inside this bubble. Most importantly, they must all pass the tests performed on them to detect the trace of the virus, resulting in negative.
Heavily restricted movement of players
The concept of a bio-secure bubble is mainly to ensure that there is minimal contact of the players with the outside world which minimizes the chance of someone catching the whiff of the virus. Players are only allowed to access the grounds and the hotels.
However, the situation is different in the UAE at the moment. The virus is claimed to be under control and the residents have a lot more freedom than the other nations. Despite the bio-secure bubble being imposed, the players may relish some leniency in terms of their movements.
No outings, no family, no visitors
This is the most stringent of all steps that are being imposed on the players. They are not allowed to have any kind of access to friends, families, visitors, and relatives during the duration of the fray. This mandate was tested heavily on English fast bowler, Jofra Archer. As he breached the protocols of the bubble to meet a friend of his, he was compelled to sit out of the second test match against Pakistan and shell out a hefty fine. He also had to self-isolate himself for five days before he could get picked to play the final Test of the series.
Mandatory self quarantining on landing
There is a high probability that players might land in advance, given the talks of extended practice sessions. Now, this extra time that we are talking about will be extremely crucial to the aspect of the tournament as it will highly involve the testing and the additional quarantining of the players before the net practice of the tournament begins. The players will have to quarantine themselves in their hotel rooms on landing in the UAE. This was once again put to the test when the West Indies cricketers landed in England quite sometime back before the series started.
Empty stadiums with designated player pathways
Something that will really change in the new avatar of cricket that is all set to take over the world of cricket is its ghostly apparitions that come with an empty stadium. An age-old dogma of an electrifying atmosphere is going to be shattered. The game is going to be played behind closed doors for the first time.
Initially, there were talks about fabricated spectator environments where simulated audience reactions could have been placed but as of now, any speculations regarding such amped-up reactions have been axed.
Going by the examples set by England and West Indies for their Test series, the grounds will have set markings and designated player pathways to ensure that too many players aren’t cramped in one place due to halting movements.
Remote commentary and contactless umpires can be a possibility
There is a chance that commentary would be probably remote in order to reduce the number of people flooding in to get the fray through without much ado. Also, the practice of handing over your sweaters, caps, sunglasses to the umpires will no longer be a part of the tournament as we will be witnessing contactless umpiring for the first time in the history of cricket.
Is bio-bubble realistic?
Like every new thing has its concerns, similarly, Dravid expressed his worries about this bubble, citing, “What if a player who passes tests end up testing positive on day 2 of a test match?”
He was, however, speaking on the safety issues and also added, “Under present-day regulations, public health officials would quarantine everyone in contact with the player”.
He concluded, “It is unrealistic to have things (in India) on the same level as the ECB is proposing.”
