Josh Hazlewood Slightly Concerned As COVID-19 Hits Chennai Super Kings' Camp

Amid rising COVID-19 cases within Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) set-up, seamer Josh Hazlewood has expressed concerns regarding the same. As many as 13 personnel have contracted the deadly virus amongst which two Indian players are also included. Australia’s Josh Hazlewood is all set for his maiden stint in the IPL after being one of the four players picked by the franchise.

Also Read: IPL 2020: After Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh Could Pull Out Of Tournament Too: Report

The confirmed positive cases of the disease that has killed millions worldwide has shaken the three-time champions’ camp. CSK players and support staff have extended the isolation period in Dubai and likely to commence training only in the first week of September, being the only team not to hit the nets yet. Furthermore, their ace batsman Suresh Raina has returned home too, citing personal reasons and will not be participating in this edition.

Josh Hazlewood remarked that he receives all the developments and information via a WhatsApp group; hence, it’s a slight concern. Josh Hazlewood, who is currently in England and is preparing for the limited-overs leg, stated that ideally there must be zero cases but is focussed on the series against England.

“We have a group WhatsApp with all the information that comes through, it’s obviously a little bit of a concern. Ideally you’d have no cases, they are in quarantine now and I think that finishes up in the next few days. All my focus is on this tour at the moment and when the IPL comes closer we’ll think about that,” the 28-year old said as quoted by India Today.

“We haven’t spoken too much about it yet” : Josh Hazlewood

The New South Wales seamer, who fetched INR 2 crores, revealed that they haven’t spoken to Cricket Australia about the rising cases of the pandemic. However, if it continues closer to the IPL date, they would have the conversation.

“We haven’t spoken too much about it yet, it’s a few weeks away until we get there. I assume those things will come up if cases are still happening closer to the date, then we’ll touch base with Cricket Australia and have a chat,” Hazlewood added.

Also Read: Aakash Chopra Highlights How Dinesh Karthik Can Stake His Claim For The 2021 T20 World Cup