Suspending IPL 2021 midway was right decision: Kane Williamson

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is indeed one of the most celebrated T20 competitions all over the world. Hence, the abrupt suspension of the tournament this year left many fans disappointed. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) called off IPL 2021 midway after several players and staff members contracted the COVID-19 virus. Speaking of the same, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain Kane Williamson has backed BCCI’s decision.

Williamson, who replaced David Warner as SRH skipper midway in IPL 2021, opined that the lucrative league had to get postponed owing to the COVID-19 crisis in India. The New Zealand skipper also said that the bio-secure bubble was intact in the initial half of the season but there were some definite breaches as the tournament progressed, resulting in the suspension of IPL 2021.

The situation in India was heartbreaking to see: Kane Williamson

“Things escalated really quickly over in India and the challenges that way in that part of the world are heartbreaking to see. From suppose us playing in a bubble with a face, you know clearly it became too great. We were very well looked after in the bubble for the first half of the tournament when things were still intact but clearly there were some breaches,” Williamson told in a press conference.

Notably, the second strain of coronavirus was wreaking havoc in India at the time of season suspension. Over three lakh new cases were recorded daily, and the death toll was also on the higher side. The deadly disease even breached the bio-secure bubble, and BCCI was left with no option and called off the tournament.

“The tournament couldn’t continue and the right decisions were made, I believe that’s how things unfolded in the IPL. (It was) so tragic and obviously such challenging times for them as a country and bubble breach in cricketing circles and things happened quite quickly after that for us I suppose,” Williamson added.

Following the postponement, Williamson and a few of his New Zealand teammates headed to the Maldives along with the Australian contingent. The players spent 13 days in quarantine on the island nation before heading to the UK for some important assignments in red-ball cricket. New Zealand will meet hosts England in a two-match Test series in June before crossing swords with India in the much-awaited ICC World Test Championship final.