Royal Challengers Bangalore have confirmed the date on which they will leave for UAE for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). IPL 2020 will be played entirely in UAE because of the coronavirus situation in India. The thirteenth edition of the tournament will be played from September 19 to November 10.
All the eight teams are expected to leave for UAE this month. Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings were reportedly considering to leave for UAE in the second week of August before the BCCI told all the franchises that they can leave India only after August 20. And as far as Royal Challengers Bangalore are concerned, they will be flying out on August 21 or 22 or around that time, according to their chairman Sanjeev Churiwala. He also confirmed that the team will be leaving on a chartered flight.
“The players would start assembling in a few days and after reaching Bengaluru, they will follow the protocol as decided by the BCCI’s standard operating procedures (SOP). They will be staying in a select hotel before leaving the country. Tests will be done as per the SOP. All Indian players and the support staff will be flying out in a chartered plane,” Churiwala told The New Indian Express.
The players will have to follow strict guidelines in the upcoming tournament due to the pandemic. All the players and staffs will live in bio-secure bubbles. Along with the players, their families will also have to stay inside the bubble and once they enter inside it, they cannot move out before the tournament ends. Churiwala said that very few players will take their families with them.
“Very selective players (of RCB) will be taking their families along with them. Families will also be subjected to the guidelines of the bio-bubble,” he said.
According to the SOP draft, members of all franchises will have to serve a mandatory week-long quarantine before starting on-field preparation. All franchises should appoint a team doctor, who will be responsible for ensuring that bio-secure environment medical guidelines are followed. In addition, all the passengers arriving at UAE are required to carry a negative COVID-19 PCR test report issued no more than 96 hours before their arrival in the country.