IPL 2021 Auction: No quarantine for team owners; two negative RT-PCR tests mandatory

The IPL team owners need not go through a mandatory quarantine ahead of the 2021 players’ auction. The mini-auction will take place in Chennai on February 18. According to Cricbuzz, the team owners will have to go through two negative RT-PCR tests if they want to take part in the auction.

The list of retained players was released last week by the respective franchises.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has now sent a notice to all the IPL team owners to have a COVID-19 test done 72 hours before the auction day and one on arrival at the venue, Grand Chola. The results of both tests have to be negative.

“Please note that the team members attending the player auction in Chennai will need to do an RT-PCR test 72 hours before the auction date and submit the negative report. Further, there will a test done in Chennai at the venue for the members attending the auction, details of which will be shared in due course,” BCCI CEO Hemang Amin, who is also the COO of IPL, wrote in his mail to the franchises.

The email further said the trading window for players will close on February 11.

“The trading window will remain open till seven days prior to the auction date and will close on 11th February 2021 at 5:00 PM (IST),” the email added.

It also has directives that a maximum of 13 members per franchise will be allowed at the auction of which only eight will be permitted to sit on the round-table while the process is on.

“Kindly confirm the names of your team members who will be present at the auction – maximum of 13 members of which 8 will be at the auction table and 5 will be seated in the gallery, to Anaisha (IPL official) by 5th February 2021,” the notice further stated.

Several overseas and Indian players were released by their respective teams ahead of the auction, including Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Harbhajan Singh and Umesh Yadav among others.