IPL 2021: Mumbai Indians flies in 3 players to Abu Dhabi via charter plane, RCB to to do the same

The preparations for the IPL 2021 resumption have accelerated. Meanwhile, Mumbai Indians has flown in three of its players to Abu Dhabi from Manchester via charter flight, while RCB is expected to do the same.

The Indian cricketers have gained some free time following the cancellation of the fifth Test against England. As a result, they would be flying to the United Arab Emirates early to join their respective franchises ahead of the Indian Premier League 2021 resumption.

Meanwhile, defending champion Mumbai Indians has done its part by flying in skipper Rohit Sharma, along with pacer Jasprit Bumrah and Suryakumar Yadav to Abu Dhabi directly from Manchester via a charter flight. The players have come to the gulf with their families and would be serving a mandatory six-day quarantine.

"All members had returned negative RT PCR results before departure. A new RT PCR test was undertaken upon arrival at Abu Dhabi, which are negative as well," said MI in a statement.

Meanwhile, Royal Challengers Bangalore is also expected to do the same soon. It intends to fly out skipper Virat Kohli and pacer Mohammed Siraj via a charter from Manchester, reports ESPNCricinfo. In a statement, RCB explained that the duo would be flying out separately, as the franchise was looking at "keeping safety and security of our players as the utmost priority".

Earlier, the players were supposed to fly out on September 15, following the conclusion of the Manchester Test. However, the recent COVID case of team physio Yogesh Parmar led to a sense of insecurity among the players, making them reluctant to take the field on Friday.

Consequently, after intense discussion between the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the England and Wales Cricket Board, the game was called off. However, BCCI has given ECB the option to reschedule the Test later.

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