Some years ago, I had the privilege of watching a cricket match between England and Pakistan at the Abu Dhabi Cricket Stadium. Owing to security concerns expressed by touring international teams, Pakistan has had the Emirates as its home turf, much to the delight of expatriates. It was indeed a festival of joy as spectators blew horns, waved flags and banners, and held up placards to celebrate fours and sixes.
The year 2020 and COVID-19 have redefined the rules of spectatorship. Batsmen will hit sixes and feel energised by virtual cheers and trumpeting. The carnival has shifted to the drawing rooms of individual fans, leaving no scope for the jingoism or parochialism that teams and players triggered in people all these decades.
All eyes are now on the UAE as the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League 2020 officially begins on Saturday, September 19. This is going to be a one-of-a-kind tournament in the time of the coronavirus pandemic. There will be no spectators at the stadiums for the majority of the matches; instead every cricket fan will watch from the safety of their homes and cheer their teams in solitude.
Since social distancing norms have been tightened in the wake of increasing COVID cases, the UAE will play the host with extra caution. The players are in a bio bubble or bio-secure environment as they train for the D-day. For nearly a month now, the players, support staff and match officials have been cocooned in their respective bubbles in Dubai and Abu Dhabi eliminating chances of interaction with people outside the bubble, especially fans.
It might seem a pity that we have the players so near and yet so far, but there is no place that can conduct the matches as efficiently as the UAE in COVID times – because rules will be rules in the UAE and people will respect them. Wearing a mask or maintaining a safe physical distance is not an attempt to curtail freedom, rather it ensures your and the nation’s freedom from the pandemic. As cricket’s second best home outside the subcontinent, the UAE can drum up the frenzy that accompanies cricket matches in jam-packed stadiums. The bulk of the expatriates being South Asians from the Indian subcontinent, the Middle East nation can feel the pulse of its residents and what they want. And it has brought the sporting extravaganza for them in a platter – eight teams and 60 matches from September 19 to November 10 that will keep evenings busy and exciting for seven weeks. Of them, 24 matches will be held in Dubai, 20 in Abu Dhabi and 12 in Sharjah.
It is just as well that the weather has turned mild after the intense summer. Though the UAE has its best weather from December to March and ideal for outdoor activities, the IPL calendar is not bad timing either. The matches are scheduled for 6 pm and 2 pm local time (7.30 pm and 3.30 pm IST), mostly on the weekends in the Gulf and rest of the world i.e., Thursday to Sunday. Anyway, the spectators have nothing much to complain as they are not going to be out in the stadium; it will also give them a reason to stay put at home and inadvertently aid COVID-preventive measures.
For the players, who derive their steam and energy from the crowds, this IPL is a reminder to play for the love of the games. As Indian captain Virat Kohli, who leads Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), reminds us, “As long as we are playing for the right reasons, and we are playing for the essence of why we started playing this sport, I think all the external factors become irrelevant. Crowds are an amazing part of any sport but that is not what you play for, eventually. You play for the right reasons, which is to play as a team, play for the love of this game, to play passionately together and the crowd is a part of your journey when they are watching you. So, our core reason will remain organic and remain pretty similar from when we all started playing as kids. But this time around, we have an opportunity to bring joy to so many other people.”
His team has a #MyCovidHeroes campaign planned out. RCB will be paying tribute to COVID frontline heroes and warriors by wearing jerseys with the words “My COVID Heroes” inscribed on the back of their jerseys for the entire tournament. The jerseys the players wear for RCB’s first match on Monday – against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Dubai – will be auctioned and the proceeds donated to Give India foundation.
IPL 2020 signifies the mutual confidence reposed by India and UAE in each other, said Dr Aman Puri, Consul General of India in Dubai. Indian Ambassador Pavan Kapoor has also lauded the efforts of the UAE government and all health agencies to ensure a secure environment for the IPL.
The first match between defending champions Mumbai Indians and three-time champions Chennai Super Kings begins at 6 pm on September 19 at Abu Dhabi Cricket Stadium. I, for one, will throw my weight behind M.S. Dhoni and CSK, and pray they lift the trophy in the grand finale. Three virtual cheers for the brave men of cricket who are going to make our evenings fun with the sporting spectacle!
