India skipper Virat Kohli stated that spending months in a biosecure ‘bubble’ environment during the Covid-19 pandemic takes a toll on players.
Team India capped off an incredible international season with a seven-run victory over the World Champions England in the nail-biting series decider on Sunday. After a 3-1 series victory in Tests and 3-2 in T20Is, India clinched the One Day International series by a margin of 2-1. This was India’s fifth consecutive series victory in all formats.
Players from both teams have moved straight into another bubble to join their respective franchises for the Indian Premier League, starting on April 9th. The cricketers will have to go through the restrictions again and spend two more months in the bubble.
Kohli, one of the most prominent figures in world cricket, has raised his voice for the mental well-being of the players.
Scheduling needs to be looked at in future, because playing in ‘bubbles’ for so long, two to three months, is going to be very, very difficult going forward,
Kohli said, speaking after India’s victory.
You can’t expect everyone to be at the same level of mental strength. Some times you do get cooked and you do feel like a bit of a change. I am sure things will be discussed and things will change in the future as well. But a different tournament, it brings fresh challenges heading into the IPL.”
Most international players have been living a biosecure bubbles life since the resumption of the sport after Covid-19 with minimal breaks. They have had to go through a hard quarantine process while living away from their home and families.
Plenty of Indian players have been in bubbles since the last IPL. Once the 2020 edition ended, the players were on the flight to Australia. After returning from Australia, they got a 10-day break and were sent into another bio-bubble ahead of the England series, including four Tests, five T20s and three ODIs.
