No contact tracing bands in IPL, Bubble Integrity Officers to trace close contacts in case of COVID cases

By Baidurjo Bhose
New Delhi [India], August 9 : The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to do away with contact tracing devices for the UAE leg of the Indian Premier League, starting on September 19. The Indian board has decided that Bubble Integrity Officers will do the necessary contact tracing if any player tests positive for COVID-19 in UAE.
Speaking to ANI, sources in the know of developments said it was a call taken considering how constantly feeding information into the Bluetooth devices can get cumbersome at times. Also, there were some cases of the device not functioning properly during the India leg of the league earlier this year.
"The BCCI has decided to do away with the idea of wearing contact tracing bands as not only is it sometimes difficult to feed information for sportspersons during the course of a tournament, but also, we had a few instances earlier this year when the devices couldn't catch the movement of the players and the fact that they had left a certain location wasn't updated and players and support staff realised this much later.
"As a result, it has been decided that the Bubble Integrity Officers present with the teams will keep a track of the movements and act accordingly if there is a case that comes up during the course of the tournament. There will be 4 integrity officers with each team and will work in shifts to help with this," the source explained.
The board has come up with a 46-page health advisory that lays down all the pointers that everyone associated with the IPL needs to follow in order to ensure the smooth functioning of the league.
All franchises will have to quarantine for six days before being able to enter the bio-bubble. The board has decided to set up 14 bio-bubbles and out of these 14, eight would belong to franchises.
"Within the Bio-Secure Environment, 14 bubbles will be created as mentioned below: Franchise teams and support staff - 8 Bubble, Match Officials & Match Management Team - 3 Bubbles, Broadcast Commentators and crew - 3 Bubbles."
"All franchise team members must quarantine in their hotel room for 6 full days before entering the bubble. Upon arrival and before commencing any group training activities, all team members who will be included in the bubble will follow the below-mentioned COVID-19 RT-PCR testing plan. A nasopharyngeal swab will be taken for testing. Test reports are available within 8-12 hours after sample collection," states the health advisory.
The board has also laid down strict instructions that everyone in the bubble must travel through dedicated vehicles only and everyone has been asked to follow this guideline to the core.
Just like last year, the BCCI has given go-ahead for bubble-to-bubble transfer hence the players coming from the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), will be able to enter the IPL bubble straight away.