IPL 2020 | Harbhajan Singh’s Dubai arrival delayed; to join CSK camp on September 1

Having already lost the services of Suresh Raina and having had to delay the start of their training due to multiple players and staff testing positive for COVID-19, Chennai Super Kings will be without the services of ace spinner Harbhajan Singh until at least September 9, as the 40-year-old is expected to arrive in Dubai only on September 1.

Harbhajan, who will undergo two COVID-19 tests in India before boarding the flight to Dubai, upon arrival, will have to observe a week of self-isolation and undergo three more Covid-19 tests, in which he’ll have to test negative, before being cleared to enter CSK’s bio-bubble to start training with the team. It is believed that the veteran delayed his travel to UAE owing to personal reasons.

The CSK franchise will, no doubt, tread carefully with Harbhajan, as over a dozen of their members tested positive for Covid-19 in the last couple of days. Among the members who tested positive were fast bowler Deepak Chahar and batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad, both of whom - and their close contacts - have been isolated from the rest of the squad.

The news of 13 personnel testing positive raised immediate concerns over the future of the tournament but the BCCI, in a press release on Saturday, confirmed that the highest measures have been taken to ensure the safety of the players, indirectly indicating that the tournament will, in fact, go ahead as planned.