Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has mentioned that he and other Australian cricketers currently participating in the IPL 2021, wouldn’t mind being on the same chartered flight that the Indian and England cricketers will take to fly out to UK after the tournament ends.
As all commercial flights from India are banned in Australia owing to the COVID-19 surge in India, a BCCI official agreed that the option could be explored by looking at the international travel guidelines during the last week of May.
"We just want to find a way to go home. The BCCI, both governments can work a solution. If we have to wait a bit longer, so be it but there is a way to get home at some stage. India and England are going to play in England. Worst comes to worst, we have to wait in England and try and find a way out in that chartered (flight) and get out of India. I am sure a lot of guys will try and put their hand up in trying to do that as well,” Maxwell told The Final Word Podcast conducted by journalists Geoff Lemon and Adam Collins.
India and New Zealand are set to fight it out in the World Test Championship final from 18 June and will fly to England for that after the IPL ends. England players in the ongoing league are expected to accompany them in the same flight.
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For Maxwell, it's about figuring the safest route that they can avail once the IPL is over as the bio-bubble is expected to break after that.
"Once IPL finishes and potentially the bubble will be broken, you don't want to be stuck here, just try and look for the safest way to move on. It's something I floated to Vinnie (fiancée), if things go extremely south, a whole lot worse, what are we actually supposed to do if there is no help? I am sure there will be help from BCCI to accommodate the overseas players at the moment," he added.
Maxwell acknowledged that the BCCI has managed to create a "solid bio-bubble."
"It's changed pretty fast in India but we have been sheltered well in the bubble. We are not really exposed too much (to the outside world). We straight move into the hotel, trying to stick to franchise's business as usual, that is playing your sport,” he said.
“We are just hoping, come 15 May, hopefully, things improve and there's a lot of work to do, here in India. You see countless people stuck in hospitals needing that extra support, long way to go before it gets better,” Maxwell signed out.
There are 14 Australian players still remaining in the league after three pullouts.
(PTI inputs)
