Pat Cummins, IPL
Pat Cummins (Image Credit: Twitter)

Pat Cummins has stated that he may be absent from the second phase of the IPL 2021 which will restart on September 19 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The 28-year-old is part of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) franchise but he is unlikely to participate when the league resumes.

Cummins cited the tight COVID-19 restrictions that are in place in Australia as one of the reasons. Although he hasn’t made an official call yet, it doesn’t augur well for the KKR fans.

Unfortunately at this stage, I probably won’t be going to the IPL. I haven’t made an official call on it but my partner is pregnant and our baby is due basically right in the middle of the IPL. There are travel restrictions in getting back to Australia and you’ve got to do two weeks of quarantine. There’s also likely to be two weeks of quarantine going to the UAE as well,” the Australian pacer noted.

Pat Cummins
Pat Cummins (Image Credit: Twitter)

The 2021 T20 World Cup will also be taking place at the same venues as the IPL. Cummins is hopeful about making it to the ICC tournament at the least.

Yeah so for the second half of the season, unfortunately, it’s gonna be very tough to get over there. We’ll see how it plays out but at this stage, it might be a bit too hard. But there’s the World Cup straight after that and I’m hoping to be good to go for that,” he expressed.

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Pat Cummins’ absence could hurt KKR’s chances in the second leg of IPL 2021

Kolkata Knight Riders, KKR
Image Credit: Twitter

Although England players’ availability was confirmed by the BCCI, Pat Cummins will be missed if he decides to skip the rest of the season. The Kolkata franchise is already weak in terms of their bowling attack and will need to bring in backup options for the Australian pacer.

KKR is languishing in the bottom half of the table, barely avoiding the wooden spoon. They have earned wins in just two out of seven games and will need a serious boost from West Indian Andre Russell and skipper Eoin Morgan, who are currently out of form for their national side.