Suresh Raina pulls out of IPL over ‘personal reasons’
A day after the Indian Premier League, due to start in three weeks, was aflutter over the news of Chennai Super Kings’ members testing positive for COVID-19, Suresh Raina on Saturday (August 29) pulled out of IPL 2020, citing personal reasons.
Raina has decided to return home from the UAE. CSK informed about Raina’s decision through Twitter. “Suresh Raina has returned to India for personal reasons and will be unavailable for the remainder of the IPL season. Chennai Super Kings offers complete support to Suresh and his family during this time,” the quote was attributed to CSK CEO KS Viswanathan on the team’s Twitter handle.
Raina has been a key member of the CSK squad since the first season of the IPL. He was looking forward to playing in the tournament after announcing his retirement from international cricket, along with Mahendra Singh Dhoni on August 15.
Altogether 12 members of the MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings contingent, currently stationed in Dubai, reportedly tested positive for Covid-19 on Friday, making it the first such case among the eight teams which are in UAE for the 2020 Indian Premier League.
An official said one India player and a senior ranking official are among those who have tested positive. But there is no official confirmation about the total number of positive cases in the CSK camp.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has said there is no immediate threat to the IPL, due to start from September 19. The BCCI had reportedly expressed its concern about the camp which the CSK attended in India before its departure for Dubai.
Before leaving for Dubai, CSK had conducted a preparatory six-day camp in Chennai from August 15 involving Dhoni, Deepak Chahar, Murli Vijay and Ambati Rayudu and others. The members were to be tested thrice upon reaching UAE in a six-day period.
The positive tests appear to have left the CSK in a quandary. The team has a host of over 30 players and most of them have been out of international cricket for some time now. Sources said as of now, CSK would not ask BCCI to postpone its matches, provided no one else tests positive.
As per convention, the previous year’s finalists – Mumbai Indians and CSK – play the first match.
