More than 30,000 PCR tests will be conducted on Indian Premier League cricketers and staff during the T20 tournament set to resume in the UAE next week.
Players and officials will be tested once every three days in keeping with stringent safety protocols to detect cases of Covid-19.
When the IPL was held in the UAE last year, players were tested every five days.
This year’s season was suspended in India in May after several players and support crew tested positive during a surge in coronavirus cases.
Cricket authorities decided to move the remaining 31 games to the UAE, where matches will take place in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah from September 19 with the final on October 15.
Even in these challenging times, the country is setting new benchmarks in expertly managing international sporting tournaments
Dr Shajir Gaffar,
VPS Healthcare
VPS Healthcare nurses and medical staff will stay in the same 14 hotel bio-bubbles as the cricketers.
The company was reappointed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India to provide medical care for India’s popular T20 tournament for the second consecutive year.
Two medical teams staffed with doctors, nurses, paramedics and lab technicians will be placed at each stadium during matches.
A 100-strong medical team has been set up to manage Covid-19 and handle sports management during the IPL.
UAE set to renew IPL testing drive
More than 750 hotel employees at 14 hotels in Dubai and Abu Dhabi were tested even before cricketers began arriving last month to adhere to the tournament’s quarantine guidelines.
Testing began on August 13 for two teams, the Mumbai Indians in Abu Dhabi and the Chennai Super Kings in Dubai.
VPS can conduct 2,000 PCR tests for the IPL daily with results released in six to eight hours.
“We are committed to ensuring a safe environment for the players and other BCCI stakeholders throughout the tournament,” said Dr Shajir Gaffar, chief executive of VPS Healthcare.
“Our team is completely equipped to take care of the medical needs of the IPL participants.
“We are confident that we can provide a great sporting experience for this year’s IPL as well.”
About 80 hospital visits and 156 injuries were treated in VPS hospitals during the 2020 IPL season in the UAE.
UAE becomes cricket capital of the world
Two days after the IPL is completed in the UAE, the T20 World Cup begins in the emirates.
Dr Gaffar said the country was well positioned to be recognised as a trusted sporting destination.
“With the second leg of the IPL and ICC T20 World Cup happening back-to-back, the UAE can solidify its pioneering position as a safe global sporting destination,” he said.
“The UAE has a good strike rate in seamlessly conducting high-profile sports events during the pandemic.
"Even in these challenging times, the country is setting new benchmarks in expertly managing international sporting tournaments through its state-of-the art stadiums, watertight measures and well-trained personnel.”
Apart from monitoring PCR tests for all personnel involved in the IPL, medics will also provide emergency treatment, sports medicine and air ambulance support during the games.
Injured players will be treated at VPS hospitals in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah, and players requiring an air ambulance will be taken to Burjeel Medical City.
A total of 13 IPL matches will be played in Dubai, 10 in Sharjah and eight in Abu Dhabi. The final will be held in Dubai.
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The Lowdown
Us
Director: Jordan Peele
Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseqph, Evan Alex and Elisabeth Moss
Rating: 4/5
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal / Ubisoft Toronto
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: Playstation 4, Xbox One, Windows
Release Date: April 10
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The five new places of worship
Church of South Indian Parish
St Andrew's Church Mussaffah branch
St Andrew's Church Al Ain branch
St John's Baptist Church, Ruwais
Church of the Virgin Mary and St Paul the Apostle, Ruwais
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 290hp
Torque: 340Nm
Price: Dh155,800
On sale: now
The Porpoise
By Mark Haddon
(Penguin Random House)
Specs – Taycan 4S
Engine: Electric
Transmission: 2-speed auto
Power: 571bhp
Torque: 650Nm
Price: Dh431,800
Specs – Panamera
Engine: 3-litre V6 with 100kW electric motor
Transmission: 2-speed auto
Power: 455bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: from Dh431,800
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
