Reports: IPL teams considering staying in resorts over five-star hotels in the UAE, Mumbai Indians planning for an entire apartment

Before the start of the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), the eight franchises and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are busy doing their homework. The COVID-19 pandemic has made sure that the health of players and staff involved in the tournament are being taken care of. Hence, testing and other precautionary measures will be in place for the T20 event.

Earlier, the IPL had to be moved out of India to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) because of the coronavirus pandemic. It has now been learned that the eight IPL teams have shown reluctance in staying in five-star hotels and will rather prefer renting resorts.

IPL teams being cautious in pandemic situation

As per some studies, the COVID-19 virus can spread through ducts in a centrally air-conditioned building. If reports are to be believed, the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have started talks with golf resorts even as Mumbai Indians (MI) are planning to rent an entire apartment.

“It’s not easy to screen everyone in the hotel all the time. Here, we are talking about over 60 days. The resorts in Dubai are high end. Arranging single-occupancy rooms will be much easier,” a source was quoted as saying by The Times of India (TOI).

The report also added that Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and the Mumbai Indians might be training in Abu Dhabi. Recently, the BCCI released an SOP for the resumption of domestic cricket amidst the grave global scenario.

In the same, the world’s richest cricket board mentioned that players should be given single-occupancy rooms and a particular section of a floor in the hotel should be blocked for them, keeping in mind the safety protocols.

The IPL is set to get underway on September 19 with the final to be played on November 10. The games will be taking place in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi over 53 days. The schedule of the tournament is yet to be announced though.

The tournament was earlier scheduled to start on March 29, but due to the lockdowns after the pandemic, it had to be postponed for an indefinite time period. Cricket in India came to a halt back in March after the cancelled ODI series against South Africa.