The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 match between Delhi Capitals (DC) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) had seen a strange request being made from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Ahead of the fixture, the BCCI had reportedly asked Rishabh Pant & Co. to not shake hands with any of the RCB players.
No, this request wasn’t made by the Indian board because of any sort of animosity between the two franchises. As per a report in the Indian Express, the BCCI had issued such a circular owing to the Covid-19 case that had emerged in the Delhi camp.
It was first informed that DC’s physio Patrick Farhart had tested positive for Covid-19, forcing the entire team to quarantine. Later, it was also reported that one of the masseur in the franchise had also contracted the virus. Though none of the players in the team returned a positive RT-PCR test, the BCCI issued instructions out of precaution.
Covid-19 had given a huge headache to the BCCI last year when the season had to be halted at the mid-way mark after multiple players had tested positive for the virus. Though the threat of the virus has been negligible this time, the board still has stern regulations in place in order to ensure a flawless season.
As for the match, it turned out to be an enthralling contest between RCB and DC. For the Bengaluru franchise, it was Dinesh Karthik who produced a match-winning knock of 66 runs from 34 balls. Delhi’s David Warner also scored 66 runs but his effort went in vain as not many batters from the other end of the pitch were able to give him company in the middle.
Courtesy of the win, RCB climbed to the 3rd spot in the points table while DC remained 8th.
