An eight-member team of BCCI’s anti-corruption unit ( ACU), led by Ajit Singh, travelled to the UAE on Tuesday to prevent any wrongdoing during the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) there.
The ACU members, who are currently in the middle of their six-day mandatory quarantine, will keep and eye on the players and educate them through video-councelling.
Singh believes the 13th season of the IPL will be secured since it will be conducted in a strict bio-bubble to avoid the risk of coronavirus contamination.
There will be no crowds at the stadium and fans won’t be allowed to throng the team hotel. However, there have been instances when corruptors masqueraded as fans to approach players.
The ACU will be speaking to players of all the eight franchises. The sessions, which will begin after the members complete their quarantine, is likely to be an eye-opener for the young players who are not accustomed to the glitz and glamours of IPL. The senior players are already aware of the protocols of ACU.
“This time there will be video counselling and it won’t be done on one to one basis. We can do it in a group as well as individual basis depending on what is possible and we will do it one by one (with all teams).
“We have also hired sports integrity agencies. We will use their help in bet monitoring activities if any suspicious clients are there,” Singh told PTI.
Meanwhile, the ACU accepted that the closed bio-bubble will increase the risk of bookies and fixers approaching the players on social media. The players will be educated about how to deal with corruptors in case such a scenario arises.
“Even in India, if we do need information, we do exchange information with ICC so that stays that it is. Nothing suspicious has been reported so far. We have two security liaison officers with each team.
“They are the ones who are keeping an eye on the bubble,” added the former DGP of Rajasthan Police.
The 2020 season of the IPL will be played for 53 days from September 19 to November 10 across three venues in the UAE — Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Dubai.
The final match will be played on a Tuesday, to make it the first-ever IPL to have its final on a weekday. The matches this season will also start 30 minutes before their original time of 4 PM and 8 PM.