The TLDR: Two players of Kolkata Knight Riders have tested positive. The team’s match against Royal Challengers Bangalore had to be postponed. And at least three members of the Chennai Super Kings squad have tested positive as well. The Indian Premier League’s bio bubble—carefully secured in the midst of a horrific second wave—looks extremely precarious. But will the consequences be graver than just a disrupted schedule?

Wait, how many Covid cases now?

Here are the cases we know of as of now. Two KKR players—Varun Chakravarthy and Sandeep Warrier—tested positive. Also positive: two Chennai Super Kings support staff—chief executive Kasi Viswanathan and bowling coach Lakshmipathy Balaji—plus a bus attendant. Though Viswanathan’s second Covid test has come back negative. And five members of the ground staff at the Arun Jaitley stadium in Delhi also have Covid—but none of them were present for the two matches played over the weekend.

Point to note: There is no reason to believe any of them are severe cases. A KKR official said:

“Sandeep, in particular, is doing fine. No temperature, no other symptoms, and is feeling good. Varun is still a little under the weather, but better than yesterday and both of them are in good spirits.”

How did this happen?

It isn’t clear what happened with CSK, but in the case of KKR, the culprit may be a hospital scan. Warrier’s case was traced back to Chakravarthy who left the bio bubble—with permission—to get his injured shoulder scanned at a hospital. But every precaution was taken to secure him as per protocol:

“Under the IPL's ‘green channel’ protocol, a player requiring treatment—usually scans—is taken in a vehicle (which is in the bubble with a driver), clad in PPE, to the hospital. The testing/treatment is done by medical personnel with PPEs and masks and the player returns in the same bubble vehicle.”

We don’t know if there was any breach in protocol. Or if the source of his infection lies elsewhere. A cricket board official said:

“We will look into how players inside the bubble contracted the virus. Varun Chakravarthy might have got himself exposed during the scan, but we don’t want to pinpoint without verifying the details. We will take necessary steps to address the situation.”

So what happens now?

KKR: Both the players are in quarantine, of course. The entire KKR contingent has to self-isolate for at least six days in their hotel rooms in Ahmedabad—starting yesterday. That period will end on May 6, two days before their next match on May 8 against the Delhi Capitals. They will now be tested for Covid every day. And team authorities have started tracing all close and casual contacts.

DC: Delhi Capitals played their last match against KKR on April 29. They too are self-isolating in their hotel rooms. No news on what will happen to Punjab Kings—since Delhi Capitals played them on Sunday. Delhi’s next match is against Rajasthan Royals on Wednesday. That’s still on the schedule for now. 

CSK: The team—which is currently in Delhi—has not made any statement on its quarantine plans. Those infected will need to spend ten days in a designated isolation facility outside the team bubble and will be allowed to return after two negative tests. Point to note: The bowling coach Laxmipathy Balaji was in the dugout during Saturday's match against the Mumbai Indians. And the other person—Kasi Viswanathan is the CEO so… But as of now, their next match against the Rajasthan Royals in Delhi on May 5 is set to go ahead.

SRH vs MI: Sunrisers Hyderabad is slated to take Mumbai Indians tonight in Delhi. Both teams skipped practice yesterday. So read into that what you will. The match has not been cancelled as yet. And DDCA president Rohan Jaitley is confident the match will be played as scheduled.

Will they cancel if it gets worse?

The league and the BCCI are fairly determined to stay on track for now, but it won’t be easy. 

A scheduling problem: As per the bio-bubble protocols, everyone who has come in “close contact” with an infected person has to “isolate for six days” and return “3 negative tests on Day 1, 3 and 6.” Now, all four teams who played against KKR in the past 14 days—Delhi Capitals, Rajasthan Royals, Punjab Kings and Chennai Super Kings—have been told to self-isolate. That poses a big problem for upcoming matches if the protocol is followed to the tee—which may not happen, given the IPL’s tendency to bend rules to keep the show on the road.

A tight window: There is no question of stretching out the season to make room for more quarantine time. The reason: The ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final between India and New Zealand is scheduled to be played at Southampton from June 18-22. The Indian team will need a clear 15-day gap between the IPL and the final to prepare—and quarantine once it reaches England.

Double headers: The easiest way to solve the problem is to arrange for more double headers—two games on the same day. Right now, there are 11 on the schedule—but that number may go up if more matches have to be cancelled.

Single venue? One rumoured plan is to shift all matches to one city—maybe Mumbai which has three stadiums. This may eliminate one of the biggest vulnerabilities within the bio bubble: airport security checks. There’s always an increased risk each time a team has to fly from one city to another.

No cancellations policy: One franchise official told Times of India, “There is no going back now with half of the tournament done.” Another team official said: “Even if you have to pause the tournament, how long can you hold back? The only way is to keep isolating the positive cases and keep playing.”

But, but, but: The team players are not so sure—especially those from overseas who worry about travel bans, and being allowed to return home. But Indian players sound worried as well: 

“There is a lot of anxiety among players. Obviously we are being tested every second day but looking at the situation in the country, you are always scared for what next in case you test positive. We are hanging in there but you cannot just negate the fear factor.”

The bottomline: All six IPL venues—Ahmedabad, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru and Kolkata—have witnessed big surges over the past month. That the bubble broke—despite stricter rules—at a time when the virus is spreading uncontrollably is hardly surprising to anyone… except maybe the IPL.

Reading list

Indian Express looks at the potential effect on the IPL schedule. ESPNCricinfo has a must-read on why the IPL 2021 bubble is more vulnerable than the IPL 2020 bubble in Abu Dhabi. Times of India looks at a cricketer’s life within the bubble. Also read: Our explainer on the IPL’s golden bio-bubble—and why it’s making everyone angry.