IPL 2021: Delhi Capitals suffer another blow as Anrich Nortje tests positive for COVID-19

Delhi Capitals (DC) have suffered a major blow as their South African pacer Anrich Nortje has tested positive for COVID-19. He is the second DC player to have contracted the virus.

Overall, Nortje is the fifth player, who is a part of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL), to test positive for COVID-19. The other four players – Nitish Rana (Kolkata Knight Riders), Axar Patel (DC), Devdutt Padikkal (Royal Challengers Bangalore), and his teammate Daniel Sams – returned with a positive test before the start of the 14th edition of the tournament.

The South Africa national team has allowed a few of their senior players to leave for the IPL in the middle of their underway home series against Pakistan - Lungi Ngidi (Chennai Super Kings), Kagiso Rabada (Delhi Capitals), Quinton de Kock (South Africa), David Miller (Rajasthan Royals), and Nortje (Delhi Capitals). Anrich

After landing in Mumbai from South Africa, Anrich tested negative and had begun the mandatory seven-day quarantine in the team hotel. However, the player returned with a positive test while undergoing the quarantine, an unnamed source has told ANI.

"He came in with a negative report, but has unfortunately tested positive now while undergoing quarantine," the source was quoted by ANI, as saying.

According to the SOP provided by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), a player/support staff, who tests positive for COVID-19, has to isolate in a delegated area outside the bio-secure bubble for a minimum of 10 days from the first day of symptoms or the date of collection of the sample that resulted in a positive report, whichever is earlier.

Nortje struck an excellent partnership with his compatriot Kagiso Rabada last season and the fast-bowling pair was one of the reasons for Delhi's impressive run in the UAE, where they qualified for their first-ever IPL final. While Rabada finished as the leading wicket-taker in the tournament with 30 scalps in 17 matches, Nortje bagged 22 in 16 games.

In the absence of Shreyas Iyer, who has been ruled out with a shoulder injury, DC have made Rishabh Pant their captain for the IPL 2021. Pant, captaining the IPL for the very first time, started off with a superb win over three-time champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Delhi's next IPL 2021 fixture is against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Mumbai on Thursday (April 15).