Bangladesh players Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman who are plying their trade in the ongoing IPL might have to return home earlier than planned due to the stringent quarantine rules imposed by the health ministry. The news was confirmed by the Bangladesh Cricket Board Chief Nizamuddin Chowdhury on Monday, 3 May.
The new quarantine rules in place which came into effect from 1 May states that any foreign travellers coming from India or South Africa have to undergo a 14-day isolation period in order to resume their duties inside the country. If BCB wants any exemption of the rules then they need to get special permission from the Directorate General of Health Services.
The BCB had earlier managed to reduce the quarantine rules for their foreign coaching staff and cricketers. However, with the second wave of Covid-19 creating a ruckus especially all over India, it is highly unlikely that relaxation will be there for people coming from either India or South Africa.
The Bangladesh national team are currently in Sri Lanka will return anytime soon and none of their players will have to follow the same quarantine rules. BCB chief Chowdhury further added that he had asked Shakib and Mustafizur about their plans for the next fifteen days.
"We have asked them (Shakib and Mustafizur) to let us know what is their plan for the next 15 days while we have also asked the health ministry to know what kind of quarantine protocol the two players will need to follow,'' BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz on Monday.
Shakib and Mustafizur had earlier planned to leave India by 19th May and join the limited-overs team after completing a three day quarantine period. However, with India recording over 3,50,000 cases every day, strict rules have been put into place for people coming from India.
"If the health ministry suggests that they will have to follow seven or 14 days quarantine, they will have to return earlier than scheduled from IPL. But before that, we have to know what rules will be in place for them. We are bound by the Bangladesh Government rules, and will take decisions according to the guideline provided by the government,” Chowdhury further added.