March 8 set as the arrival date of IPL teams, five practice venues identified

In a recent development, it has been understood that the IPL franchises will start training in Mumbai from March 14 onwards in the bid to prepare themselves for the upcoming edition of India's marquee T20 event. 

In a recent meeting of Maharashtra Government with the BCCI's Acting CEO Hemang Amin, a plan was discussed for the smooth conduct of the cash-rich tournament in the state. The meeting held earlier today also involved the key members of the MCA along with Aaditya Thackeray and Eknath Shine.

The players will begin their arrival in Mumbai from March 8 after a negative COVID-19 report 48 hours prior the travel following which they would have to fulfil a mandatory quarantine period of 3-5 days. They will be further tested three times before entering their respective bio-bubbles.

"Teams will start practising most likely by March 14-15 onwards. Players and support staff will start coming to Mumbai around March 8 for the IPL," a source said as quoted to ANI.

While in quarantine, they will undergo in-room RT-PCR testing three times, first on day 1, second on day 3 and the final one on day 5. In case of three days quarantine, they will get tested every day. If all three test results are negative, they will be permitted to exit quarantine and commence team activities," he added.

MCA ground in Bandra Kurla Complex, MCA ground in Thane, DY Patil University ground, a football pitch along with the CCI (Cricket Club of India) and the Reliance Corporate Park ground in Ghansoli have been zeroed in as the practice venues.

"As all the teams will be playing matches across the four venues in Mumbai, Pune and they will also have practice sessions at various practice facilities. A green corridor will need to be created for their movement so that the bio bubbles are maintained. BCCI will follow the protocols of the bio-secure movement for all the participants in the bubble.

"During the travel to Navi Mumbai and Pune, it will be ideal to have a safe passage and smooth movement to avoid delays. If any member of a team ends up testing positive for COVID-19, they are likely to be allowed quarantine in the hotel and special arrangements will be made for that scenario," the source informed.

IPL 2022 will run from March 26 to May 29 and is scheduled to be held in two major cities of Maharashtra, Mumbai and Pune. The BCCI is yet to announce the full schedule of the tournament, which has now been expanded to a 10-team competition after the inclusion of two new franchises- Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans.