Personal milestones galore for MS Dhoni before CSK's opening game against Delhi Capitals

IPL 2021: All officials entering Wankhede must produce COVID negative results

The second wave of COVID-19 has put extensive pressure on the organisers on how to cope with the situation and conduct the 14th edition of IPL without any fuss. After 10 ground staff and six event managers tested positive for the infection, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has come up with extensive rules and regulations in order to enter the Wankhede Stadium. MCA has asked its Apex Council Members to produce a COVID-19 negative certificate in order to eligible for entry in the Wankhede Stadium. The stadium is scheduled to hold 10 matches in the competition with the first match to be played between Chennai Super Kings and the Delhi Capitals later today, 10 April. "Dear Apex Council members. As per BCCI's protocol, all the officials who would be attending the IPL 2021 matches at Wankhede Stadium are required to produce a Negative report of RT-PCR test conducted within 48 hours of the matchday," MCA secretary Sanjay Naik, wrote in a note to all the members. The note further stated that the tests were mandatory even for the members who had already been vaccinated.

Watch: Shreyas Iyer’s emotional video to boost up DC ahead of their IPL 2021 opener

Delhi Capitals’ regular skipper Shreyas Iyer sent out an emotional video, backing the team in their pursuit of the elusive IPL title. Asking fans to back the players and the team starting with their opening game against Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede tonight, Shreyas says, “We know it won’t be easy, but we know what it takes to raise the cup.” The 26-year-old, who was ruled out of this year’s IPL with a shoulder luxation further goes on to say that the team has worked harder than ever before and want to win games more than ever before. The Mumbai born eggs on the team as a voice representing millions of DC supporters saying, “We fight the same fight, we always did. The best is, we go beyond just a team. Make no mistakes about it, every game, every ball, you will have me in the corner as your loudest supporter, come on Delhi roar macha!” Capitals, who reached their first-ever IPL Finale last year, begin their 2021 campaign under new leader Rishabh Pant against MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings, tonight, April 10 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

IPL 2021: Chris Lynn backs Rohit Sharma for his tactical moves against RCB

Chris Lynn who made his debut for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL 14 curtain-raiser against Royal Challengers Bangalore backed his captain Rohit Sharma for keeping three of Jasprit Bumrah’s overs in the death. Rohit Sharma has always relied on Bumrah to give him important breakthrough in crucial junctures and he has his way of handling his bowlers in crucial phases of the match. Lynn said that Rohit ‘has a method to his madness' in context to his tactical moves during the opening encounter of IPL 14. "Rohit has been a very successful captain, so you got to back the captain and back the moves he makes," he said at the press conference after the conclusion of the opening match. "I think Bumrah is excellent in death overs, so he wanted to keep his overs at the back-end." "Rohit has a method to his madness, so at the end of the day, it (not using Bumrah against Maxwell early) wasn't a tactical error. Just that it was a skill error on our part," he added. Rohit Sharma has been the most successful IPL captain with five titles under his belt. Meanwhile, it must be noted that MI haven’t won any of their opening games in the competition since 2013. The defending champions in that regard will be in a good space after losing the first match which has been the case with them for several years now. However, they have managed to win five titles in that period. Coming back to the match, Rohit used just five bowlers during the course of the innings. Hardik Pandya who threw underarm from the deep on at least a couple of occasions wasn’t given the ball and it was perhaps due to a shoulder niggle which Lynn mentioned during the presser. "I think Hardik has a bit of shoulder niggle, but I'm not 100 per cent sure. The physios and the doctors will look after that if anything's wrong with Hardik. We missed the sixth bowler, but it's very early in the tournament, still a long way to go. But I do believe if Hardik is bowling, that brings in a lot of confidence in his batting and adds another dimension, not only to his game but also for us." Lynn, who was making his debut for the Mumbai Indians scored a brisk 49 but in the process ran out his skipper. He came in the XI as a replacement for Quinton de Kock who is currently serving a seven-day quarantine. "It was my first game for Mumbai, so obviously I was a bit nervous and I batted with Rohit for the first time as well. If I had been able to run past him and sacrifice my wicket, I definitely would have done it, but that wasn't the case. Running out my captain, it was my first game for Mumbai, well it could be my last, who knows. Happens in the game of cricket,” Lynn added. Riding on a brilliant knock from the blade of AB de Villiers, RCB huffed and puffed to their victory target of 160 in the final ball of the match. RCB who are looking for their elusive IPL title will look to continue the momentum in the coming matches.

IPL 2021: Shikhar Dhawan backs his process to deliver well on D-day

Delhi Capitals opener and senior statesman in the team, Shikhar Dhawan believes that he is a process-oriented person and doing the process well is more important than chasing a number in the mind. “I am always process-oriented, so I don’t look to chase a particular target that I have to score this much. If I am going well into my process, runs will naturally flow,” Gabbar said in a video released by the Capitals on their official Twitter account ahead of their first IPL game of the 2021 season. “I always look to try new shots in the nets and then implement them in the game. Sharpening my skills and backing my strength is the biggest things that I like to carry with me,” the southpaw added, making it clear that he has some surprises up his sleeves ahead of the all-important opener against Chennai Super Kings at Wankhede tonight. The Delhi born further went on to thank his and the team’s fans for their support. “I would like to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your support and hope to have a lot more of it in the coming days,” he said. “We miss our fans in the stadium. The energy that the crowd brings can not be compensated. It is great fun playing with the crowd. But even without them we gotta do what we gotta do,” added the 35-year-old.