IPL 2021 COVID aftermath: Varun Chakravarthy still feeling weak, Wriddhiman Saha labels UAE better venue

The Indian cricket fraternity remains in shock after the highly-entertaining Indian Premier League 2021 was indefinitely suspended due to breaches in its team bubbles by COVID-19. Around ten of the participating members were infected, including Varun Chakravarthy, Wridhhiman Saha and Amit Mishra.

As of now, all the infected members have recovered. However, the aftermath of the coronavirus seems to be strong. Chakravarthy, the first player to test positive, has suggested that he is still not fit enough to train, as he feels dizzy and weak.

"I'm now doing well and recovering at home. I still haven't been able to resume training full tilt because of post-Covid-19 symptoms. Although I don't have cough or fever, there is weakness and dizziness. The loss of smell and taste is still intermittent, but I'm confident of being able to resume training soon," he told ESPNCricinfo.

"As to how it all started, I felt something was slightly off on May 1. I felt tired. There was no cough whatsoever, but I had little fever, so I didn't attend our training session. I immediately informed the team management and they arranged for an RT-PCR test quickly. I was immediately quarantined and isolated, away from the rest of my KKR teammates in a separate wing of the hotel. Soon, I found out that I'd tested positive," he revived.

Chakravarthy also stated that it was tough to keep the mind distracted while he was isolating. Nonetheless, reading books, along with Netflix and Amazon Prime, did keep him busy. "The toughest thing about contracting Covid-19 is keeping your mind distracted and away from all that was happening. Because you are alone, away from your family and teammates, to keep myself occupied, I read books by Osho to give me a sense of calm," he added.

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Meanwhile, Saha has questioned the purity of the IPL 2021 bubble, while he has publicly admitted that it was not the same as IPL 2020 in the United Arab Emirates. He also agreed that playing in the UAE this year too would have been ideal, as the arrangements in the gulf were foolproof, unlike India.

"Here, there would be people, kids peeping from nearby walls. I don't want to comment much, but we saw how the IPL went off smoothly in UAE in 2020 and then, it started in India this year with cases on the rise. I don't know what would have happened, but definitely, I feel it would have been better off in UAE this time as well. It's for the stakeholders to look into it," he told PTI.

"I had a slight fever for the first couple of days, lost smell after five days, but it returned within four days. It was about spending time with family, friends (online), catching up with some light-hearted movies and keeping myself in a good space. I was never mentally disturbed or down. I was just being normal," he remembered his battle with the coronavirus.

Saha is currently in a race against time to prove his fitness ahead of his scheduled departure to England for the Test commitments. Presently, he is spending some time with his family in Kolkata and is expected to join Team India's bubble in Mumbai next week, serving one-week quarantine before flying to England on June 2.

NOTE: Asianet News humbly requests everyone to wear masks, sanitise, maintain social distancing and get vaccinated as soon as eligible. Together we can and will break the chain #ANCares #IndiaFightsCorona

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