Australian batsman Marnus Labuschagne admitted that being overlooked at the Indian Premier League (IPL 2021) auction was “a blessing in disguise” for him given the rising COVID-19 cases in India.
As many as 30 Australian players, coaches, and commentators are currently involved in the ongoing IPL 14 with three players – Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa, and Kane Richardson have already opted to fly back home with India recording COVID-19 cases over 3.5 lakh per day.
The 26-year-old, who found no buyers at the mini IPL 2021 auction in February, has also expressed his concern for his fellow Australian teammates featuring in the ongoing IPL 2021 – who caught up in India's current devastating COVID-19 crisis. Labuschagne also said if he had played in the IPL 14, he would not have got the opportunity to win the Sheffield Shield Trophy with Queensland.
However, Labuschagne said many Australian players would not feel unsafe in the IPL bio-bubbles and hoped they get back home safely whenever they do.
Labuschagne told Sky Sports, “You obviously feel for them. But I haven't spoken to too many guys that are feeling unsafe. It's more about getting back into Australia and what does that look like. I just hope that they stay safe and get back to Australia safely whenever they do.”
On missing out on the IPL 2021, “It certainly looks like it was a blessing in disguise. I would love to have played in the IPL, it's a great tournament. But there's always two sides to the coin.”
The right-hander further added, “If I was in the IPL I would have been away and to win a Shield is something that doesn't come around often. Secondly, you look at the conditions in India now and it's not looking great. Being in Wales, things are opening up and that's a real positive. People are getting some freedom after the last 12 to 18 months.”
However, Labuschagne was hopeful that cricket matches will soon see the return of fans at the stadiums. He said: “I can’t see any reason why there won’t be any fans in Australia at this stage. I think the Covid cases are almost down to zero or not many community spread cases at least.”
He signed off by saying, “Considering we had crowds at almost every game this summer it would seem there will be crowds and that’s exciting from any cricketer’s perspective.”
