PSL 2021 was not postponed because of me and Wahab Riaz: Daren Sammy

The Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2021 will reportedly resume in the first week of June, and all the teams would be gearing up for the marquee event. The T20 tournament, which was initially scheduled to take place in February and March, was suspended midway after several members contracted the COVID-19 virus despite being in the bio-bubble. While the main reason behind the breach isn’t understood yet, some reports suggested that Wahab Riaz and Daren Sammy have violated the protocols.

Sammy is the head coach of Peshawar Zalmi, while Riaz leads the side. At the start of PSL 2021, the duo was accused of breaching the bio-secure protocols to meet team owner Javed Afridi during their practice session. As per the rules, they were supposed to be in isolation for three days and had to return two negative COVID-19 tests to be allowed back in the bubble. However, Sammy and Riaz joined the squad before the required period, and the latter even played all the games.

Subsequently, fans lashed out at Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for easing the norms for the duo. Sammy and Riaz came under the scanner even further when the entire competition was postponed. Speaking of the same, Sammy claimed he had nothing to do with the PSL being paused indefinitely.

Me and Wahab Riaz didn’t break the bio-bubble: Daren Sammy

“I wouldn’t say we broke the bio-secure bubble. This is new territory for everybody. When I read the news, it made it sound like Wahab and myself left the hotel and ventured out. We just had training and we said hello to our boss (Javed Afridi). By the time we realized what had happened, we had two COVID tests, so did the Boss,” Sammy said in an interview with The Current.

Highlighting that no one from the Peshawar Zalmi squad had got infected, the former West Indies captain said that the whole team was very strict about the rules. Concluding, it would be wrong to claim that PSL 2021 was suspended due to Wahab and his actions.

“We were negative and I could tell you from that day onwards, Peshawar Zalmi was really strict to the books and if you noticed, none of our players tested positive during or after that and the tournament was definitely not called off because of me and Wahab shaking hands with our boss at the cricket ground,” he added.

PSL will now be resuming in Abu Dhabi, with Sammy joining his team soon. The Wahab Riaz-led side is currently second in the team standings, with three wins in five games.