IPL 2020 COVID-19 count goes up to 14 as BCCI medical team member tests positive

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been going through a turbulent phase since the past few months. The Sourav Ganguly-led board had to first indefinitely postpone the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2020) due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, once the tournament was set to get underway in the UAE from September 19, the title sponsor of the cash-rich league, VIVO pulled out due to the severe backlash on social media.

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BCCI medical commission member tests positive for COVID-19

Recently, several members of the CSK contingent tested positive for coronavirus and now according to a recent development, the BCCI has suffered yet another setback as a member of its medical tested positive for the ungodly virus on Wednesday. According to a report in The New Indian Express, a member of the medical commission of the Indian cricket board (BCCI) tested positive. However, the professional does not have symptoms and has been isolated.

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With the latest development, the number of cases in IPL has touched 14 after 13 CSK members tested positive last week including two players (Deepak Chahar and Ruturaj Gaekwad). On top of that, CSK's batting mainstay Suresh Raina also pulled out of the IPL 2020 due to the COVID-19 threat.

Meanwhile, the coronavirus situation in the UAE has further deteriorated. The UAE Government confirmed that 735 new positive cases were found on Wednesday from a total of 79,623 tests. Since May 27, when the UAE had announced 883 new positive cases, the country had made some serious progress and had significantly flattened the curve. However, in the last few days, there has been a rapid rise in positive cases in the UAE. 

Due to a rise in coronavirus cases in the IPL bio-secure bubble, the IPL 2020 organizers recently came out with a contact tracing device enabled with bluetooth for each player, family member, support staff member and official in the UAE, which has to be worn at all times. The idea is to detect those who aren't following social distancing norms and other SOPs in the case of testing positive.

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The IPL 2020 is set to commence on September 19 with the final slated to be played on November 10. The 53-day tournament will witness 10 afternoon matches starting at 3:30 PM (IST) while the evening matches will start at 7:30 PM (IST). The cricketing extravaganza will be played across three venues - Dubai, Sharjah, and Abu Dhabi. All the IPL 2020 franchises have already started gearing up for the tournament and are leaving no stone unturned to ensure the safety of the players.

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IMAGE COURTESY: SOURAV GANGULY INSTAGRAM