India pacer Umesh Yadav has expressed his desire to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) this year and believed that the cash-rich tournament could be a perfect platform for cricketers to get acclimatised to all the new rules that have been introduced by the governing bodies of the game.
“Right now I have no idea if the IPL will happen this year or not, but I hope it does. As we haven’t played any matches for a long time now, it is important to play domestic matches before international series starts. As lots of rules have changed now so at least we will have an idea how to take the new rules ahead and how to cope up with them, how to bowl in a particular situation etc. So yes, I want IPL to happen this year,” Yadav said as quoted by IANS.
The 32-year-old pacer also gave an insight into his life during the lockdown and revealed that it had been quite hard for him to maintain his fitness and go along with the schedule without getting distracted.
“Actually, maintaining the workout discipline is difficult during the lockdown. Training is still fine but what is difficult is the action of the athlete like the feel of working out together at the ground. Also when you are at home and you can’t step out, at times you feel very lazy. I even think of taking an off day or cheat on a diet, but this is the most crucial time and we need to avoid the lazy thoughts and push yourself. I give at least 1-2 hrs a day to training without fail,” he pointed.
Meanwhile, the IPL 2020, which was scheduled to be played from March 29 this year, was earlier postponed to April 15 before it was suspended indefinitely due to the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, a report by Mumbai Mirror stated that the BCCI was reportedly looking at the possibility to host the 13th edition of the IPL from September 26 to November 8, considering that the T20 World Cup would be postponed.