CPL 2020: Fabian Allen ruled out of the tournament after missing his flight

The Caribbean Premier League (CPL 2020) is all set to be held from August 18 to September 10 in Trinidad and Tobago. The league will feature six teams namely Barbados Tridents, Guyana Amazon Warriors, Jamaica Tallawahs, St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots, St. Lucia Zouks and Trinbago Knight Riders.

The players, staff, and officials were expected to join their team camps in Trinidad two weeks before the start of the tournament. A number of special charter planes were organized to fly them to the island.

Meanwhile, St Kitts and Nevis Patriots player Fabian Allen has been ruled out of the 2020 edition of the Caribbean Premier League as he missed his flight from Jamaica to Barbados. Allen was retained by Nevis Patriots in the last month’s draft and was scheduled to reach Barbados through an internal flight on Monday, August 3. He further had to board the charter plane to Trinidad but due to some confusion, he couldn’t make it to the airport on time.

“Unfortunately there was some confusion with his understanding of the flight details and he missed the flight. We explored all possibilities, but due to the pandemic and travel restrictions in Trinidad, the charter flight on Monday was the only way he could enter the country.” Allen’s agent told ESPNcricinfo.

In the wake of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the country is under lockdown and travel restrictions made it impossible for Fabin to reach Trinidad. Also, the franchise wouldn’t be able to replace him in the squad. All the players were tested for the virus upon their arrival on the island and will have practice self-quarantine for a specific amount of time.

Other withdrawals from the CPL 2020

A number of players and support staff of St Kitts and Nevis Patriots have withdrawn their names from the tournament for a variety of reasons. Apart from Allen, head coach Simon Helmot has also pulled out his name for the tournament as he was tested positive for the novel coronavirus. His assistant coach Malolan Rangarajan would not be attending the Caribbean league as it would clash with Royal Challengers Bangalore’s pre-IPL camp.

Spinner Dennis Bulli was tested positive for the virus and had to be replaced by Trinidad and Tobago leg-spinner Imran Khan. Rassie van der Dussen couldn’t confirm his travel plans and was therefore replaced by Otago batsman Nick Kelly.

Other players like Afghans Qais Ahmad, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Noor Ahmad also had to withdraw their names at the last moment due to some technical problems.

Four players who toured England for a three-match Test series have been named as a replacement. The players are Shamarh Brooks and Keon Harding (Barbados Tridents), Jermaine Blackwood (Tallawahs) and Roston Chase (St Lucia Zouks).