IPL 2020 | Don’t mind playing IPL in empty stadiums, attests Harbhajan Singh
Harbhajan Singh has revealed that even though audience is important in sports, if situation arises, he would not mind playing the IPL in front of empty stands. The former Indian cricketer had, earlier, said that sport doesn’t even come to the mind during the testing times of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, if a delayed edition of the Indian Premier League does take place, he wouldn’t mind playing in the absence of spectators at the ground. As the number of deaths around the globe owing to the COVID-19 pandemic has risen to 65,000, the cancellation of the IPL is more likely.
However, upon reaching global normalcy, IPL might be played a little delayed or at the end of the year. Despite the deadly pandemic, which has brought down the economy severely, the IPL is important since many livelihoods are dependent on it. Singh further stressed the importance of keeping the players safe given cricket is played behind closed doors.
“Spectators are important, but if the situation arises, I don’t mind playing without them. Yes, as a player I won’t get the vibe, but this will ensure that every fan will get to watch IPL on their TV,” Harbhajan told Star Sports’ Cricket Connected.
“We will have to be cautious about everything and should prioritise players’ safety by ensuring that the match venues, team hotels, flights are properly sanitized. A lot of lives are on line so we should organise IPL when everything is fine.”
While the BCCI has suspended the IPL till April 15, and India’s government-induced lockdown gets over a day before, it is still unlikely that the high-profile event would be carried out. The Chennai Super Kings spinner expressed his disappointment and admitted that he did miss playing.
“I miss matches the most, was hoping that I would get to play 17 matches (including finals) after a year’s gap. I miss our visits to the ground, the hordes of fans waiting to greet us, the bikes that used to ride along our bus and am sure that every fan is missing this as well. I hope that IPL happens soon, till then I will keep myself fit,” he quipped.
0
0
0
0
0
0
Comments
Sign up or log in to your account to leave comments and reactions
0 Comments