‘No plans to arrange chartered flight for Aussies’

Cricket Australia (CA) currently has no plans to arrange a chartered flight to bring its players back home from COVID-19-ravaged India once the IPL gets over, its chief Nick Hockley said on Monday.

Hockley insisted that the Australian players are feeling safe and secure in the IPL bio-bubble, but his comments came before two Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) players tested positive for the virus on Monday. “There is no suggestion at the moment for a chartered flight,” Hockley told Melbourne radio station SEN.

“We are working and talking closely with the Australian Cricketers’ Association, players and the BCCI to make sure everyone is okay and the people have got full information. We have been in touch with the players there and they are generally in good spirits. The work the BCCI has done around the bubble means they are feeling safe and secure. Those we have talked to are planning to complete their playing commitments.” The CA boss said that the Board is monitoring the situation and added that a decision would be made but not immediately.

Meanwhile, CA pledged to donate 50,000 Australian dollars to support India’s fight against the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is wreaking havoc.

Former Australia cricketer Michael Slater, who was commentating in the IPL, flew to Maldives amid rising COVID-19 cases in India. He also lashed out at his country’s government for not allowing Aussies, who are stranded in India, to return.

“If our Government cared for the safety of Aussies they would allow us to get home. It’s a disgrace!! Blood on your hands PM. How dare you treat us like this. How about you sort out quarantine system. I had government permission to work on the IPL but I now have government neglect,” Slater tweeted on Monday.