Pandya brothers open up on challenges of living life inside bio-bubbles, Hardik reveals source of motivation in such times

Cricket in the time of Covid-19 has seen the emergence of bio-bubbles and endless quarantines, which has taken a toll on the mental health of many. With the players not allowed to even step out of their hotel rooms upon reaching new destinations for a limited time initially, the game has thrown a different challenge as they fail to interact and mingle with each other.

India all-rounder Hardik and Krunal Pandya have recently been selected in the 25-member squad announced by the BCCI for India’s Sri Lanka tour. Almost a custom now, India will have to undergo a hard quarantine of three days upon reaching Colombo, the venue of all six white-ball games of the series. The player will be later on allowed to train and practice, although only inside the bio-secure environment.

Opening up on the same and how they deal with life inside bubbles, the Pandya brothers revealed that “it is difficult” to cope with such stringent norms, but they are happy to be able to bring a smile to the faces of so many in these trying times.

Life inside a bio-bubble is mentally challenging: Krunal Pandya

“It is difficult. When you are playing at the highest level, there is also the constant pressure of performance as well. When you are playing at the highest level, when you’re playing for your country, when you’re playing for your franchise team, the pressure of performance is always there. Whether you do well or whether you don’t do well. We are going through this stuff (Covid situation) and there’s this bio bubble as well. So it’s mentally challenging,” Krunal told TOI Sportscast.

When asked what keeps the them motivated in such challenging times, Hardik Pandya replied: “The one thing that always motivated us (while being in strict bio-bubbles) was that we were able to play cricket. We were able to bring smiles to so many faces.”

“As cricketers when we are playing IPL for instance, when we used to play our game, obviously we were busy. But when we don’t have the game (not playing), we actually look forward to watching a game. For people it brought so much happiness. When the IPL is over, lots of people don’t know what to watch. (People say) 7 baje ka to adat ho gaya, ab kya karein? (We have got used to watching the IPL at 7 pm, now what do we watch?). We feel the same. The funny part is we feel the same. IPL khatam hota hai to lagta hai 7 baje kuch ayega nahin (when the IPL is over we feel like there’s nothing to do when it’s 7pm),” he further explained.

Pandya brothers were last active during IPL 2021, which was suspended midway as multiple Covid-19 cases emerged inside the bio-bubbles of different teams. However, after long deliberations, the BCCI has managed to zero in UAE as the venue to finish the remaining 31 games.