A cricketer’s life inside the bio-bubble isn’t immune to the raging pandemic that the country is battling. That realisation dawned with Ravichandran Ashwin and two Australians deciding to withdraw from the IPL on Monday.

The India off-spinner tweeted in the early hours following Delhi Capitals’ Super Over victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad that he would take a break since his “family and extended family are putting up a fight against Covid-19” and wants to “support them”. He hopes “to return to play if things go in the right direction”.

Adam Zampa and Kane Richardson of Royal Challengers Bangalore also announced their unavailability in the morning because of “personal reasons”.

There was no official word from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), but it’s unlikely that such withdrawals will create any impact on the 14th edition of the money-spinning league from going ahead as planned.

The common perception is that none of the big-ticket draws, besides Ashwin, have expressed any apprehension and the overseas players who have decided to return home is because of the tightening of quarantine rules in their country.

On Sunday, Rajasthan Royals’ Andrew Tye became the second player from the IPL to head back home after his teammate Liam Livingstone returned to England citing “bubble fatigue” last week.

While there’s a growing apathy about the IPL in certain quarters, the BCCI has decided to send out more messages advocating the benefits of vaccination and safety protocols during live TV coverage. The social media teams of the franchises will also have public announcements on use of masks, social distancing, sanitization and plasma donation.

“It is not true that we are living in a bubble within the bubble and are cut off from the outside world. Players obviously have concern for their near and dear ones who are at home. Just because they are silent doesn’t mean that they are not worried about family members being affected by the virus,” said a franchise official.

Will this grim situation have an effect on their performance? “The players are too professional to be affected by such thoughts. If they feel anything like that can happen, they will withdraw. Look at Ashwin,” the official said. “Some of the franchises even have mental conditioning professionals to look after their players.”

The BCCI is not reading much into the notion that the IPL is irrelevant in these tragic times.

“IPL is not an election rally or congregation of people. There are no spectators involved and it is in no way contributing to the growing number of Covid-19 positive cases,” sources within the BCCI told The Telegraph.

“IPL is at least helping people to stay indoors and at home. Then why all such talk? Yes everyone feels for what is happening around us... The bio-bubble is secure and logistics are being managed efficiently. There’s nothing to worry. People need succour during these times of distress and the IPL is capable of providing that. It provides positive vibes all around.

“Remember, the IPL is also contributing to the economy in a big way. A lot of livelihood is dependent on it. It’s easy to find a scapegoat and vent one’s ire but we should think about it logically,” the source remarked.

“Nowhere in the world sport has stopped because of the pandemic. EPL matches were on even when the second wave was ravaging the UK. The same story applies in Spain. Players have even tested positive in between matches there. Here so far nothing has happened because of the strict bio-bubble.”