Covid-19 cases surface ahead of BPL

With less than three days to go for the start of the Bangladesh Premier League, some of the players and support staff of the franchises have tested Covid-19 positive, confirmed Bangladesh Cricket Board's chief physician Debashish Chowdhury.

Before entering the bio-bubble on Tuesday, players and the staff of the six franchises had to undergo mandatory coronavirus testing ahead of the tournament, which is scheduled to begin from January 21.

"We started the mandatory Covid-19 tests of the players and support staff of the BPL teams yesterday and so far we have got a few positive cases," Debashish told The Daily Star.

However according to the BCB medical team, those who tested positive had mild symptoms and were kept in isolation. With growing concern over the Omicron variant and players from around the world already starting to arrive in the country, it will be a huge challenge for the BCB to successfully complete the month-long event smoothly.