Now less than a week is left for the start of IPL 2022. But the troubles of MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are not taking the name of lessening. Where the franchise is already worried about the fitness of opener Rituraj Gaikwad and bowler Deepak Chahar. At the same time, due to the delay in the visa of English all-rounder Moeen Ali, who was retained for 8 crores, the tension of the team has increased further.
Moeen Ali was retained by CSK along with Dhoni, Jadeja and Gaekwad. Last year, he played a vital role in making the team champions, making significant contributions with both the ball and the bat. According to a Cricbuzz report that surfaced on Saturday, Moin had applied for a visa on February 28 but has not received the approval even after 20 days.
CSK CEO Kashi Viswanathan said that Moin had applied for the visa on February 28. It’s been 20 days since that application. They haven’t got permission to travel yet. Moin has told us that he will take off on the next flight after getting the papers. BCCI has also intervened in this matter to help us. We are hopeful that he will get the papers by Monday, March 21 and he will join the team soon.
In fact, in countries like South Korea and China, the corona has started spreading once again. In such a situation, the central government has sent a letter warning the Maharashtra government and asked it to be on alert. Maharashtra has consistently been one of the most affected states in all the previous waves. The league matches of IPL 2022 will also start here from March 26. This time 55 matches will be played in Mumbai and 15 matches in Pune.
The Maharashtra government had allowed 25 percent of the audience in the initial days. But now the news is also coming that the entry of spectators may be banned and once again IPL can be held in empty stadium. On Saturday evening, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope had informed about the letter sent by the government.
He told ANI that, ‘We have received a letter from the central government to be alert about corona. Cases of COVID-19 have increased in European countries, South Korea and China. Keeping this in mind, the Health Department had issued a letter asking them to be alert and take necessary steps. However, we do not want to comment on the IPL match as of now.
The first match of IPL 15 will be played between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on March 26. All 70 matches of this season’s league stage will be played at Mumbai’s Wankhede, Brabourne, DY Patil and MCA Stadium in Pune. The playoff schedule has not been announced yet.