India's top umpire Nitin Menon and Australia's Paul Reiffel withdrew from the Indian Premier League (IPL) due to personal reasons. It is learned that Menon's wife and mother Kovid-19, who lives in Indore, have been found positive and hence they decided to opt-out of the IPL's bio bubble environment.
Menon is the only Indian in the Elite Panel of International Cricket Council (ICC) umpires. He was widely praised for his good umpiring during the recently concluded series between India and England.
An official of the Board Of Cricket Control India (BCCI) said, "Yes, Nitin has withdrawn from the IPL as his family members have been found infected with Covid-19. He is not in a position to conduct matches right now. "
Australian umpire Paul Reiffel has also decided to withdraw from the IPL due to Australia's travel ban from India.
Meanwhile, BCCI has further tightened the Bio-Bubble SOPs for the safety of players. Now the players will undergo a Covid-19 test every two days. Along with this, a ban has also been imposed on the players to order from outside the hotel.