The surge in COVID-19 cases all over India might have a significant say in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as the lucrative league returns home this year after being shifted to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) last year as eight groundsmen have tested positive at the Mumbai's iconic Wankhede Stadium, just one week before the first game at the venue.
According to a report in The Hindu, 19 members of the ground staff had undergone the RT-PCR test for the coronavirus. While three of them returned positive last Friday, March 26, and five more returned with a positive result in the tests conducted on April 1.
The state of Maharashtra is experiencing the highest rise in COVID-19 cases across the country as it reported around 47,827 cases and 202 deaths on Friday. Out of which, Mumbai registered its highest-ever single day spike of 8,832 new cases. It was the second day in a row that Mumbai recorded more than 8,500 cases.
The development has certainly put the IPL games in the city in jeopardy, with the first game set to kick-off in Mumbai on April 10 between the last year's runners-up Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings. The Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai is set to host 10 matches of the league stage till April 25. With cases increasing at a rapid pace in the country and especially in Mumbai, the IPL is certainly has become vulnerable to the coronavirus pandemic with the groundsmen - part of the bio-bubble - testing positive.
The 14th Edition of the league takes off in Chennai with the defending champions Mumbai Indians taking on the Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 9.
