Bio-secure bubbles are like luxury prisons, says South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada

Cape Town: Ahead of the white-ball series against England, Proteas pacer Kagiso Rabada on Monday spoke about the hardships of being in a bio-secure bubble and he compared the bubble to a luxury prison.

England and South Africa are slated to lock horns in three T20Is and three ODIs. Both teams are staying in a bubble in Cape Town. Before this tour, Rabada was a part of the Delhi Capitals` squad in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and he spent almost three months in a bio-secure bubble in Dubai.

"It can be quite tough. You can`t interact. You`ve basically lost your freedom. It`s almost like luxury prisons we are in. But we have to remind ourselves that we are fortunate. People have lost their jobs, people are struggling at the moment, so we must be grateful for the opportunity we have been given to make some money and to do what we love," ESPNCricinfo quoted Rabada as saying.

"And we don`t get treated too badly. We stay in great hotels. We get the best food. It`s like a spoilt kid not getting what they want at the candy store. It can be quite tough because you are surrounded by four walls the whole time and that can be a factor mentally. But just remind yourself of all the good things that are happening and once we start playing, it will take away from the desolate times," he added.

Rabada had finished the IPL as its top wicket-taker as his franchise Delhi Capitals made the finals of the tournament for the very first time. Before the IPL, Rabada had spent almost six months without any cricket action.

"The break helped to refresh the body and to take the mind off of a lot of things. But I don`t know if long extended breaks will happen in the future because cricket is getting more and more. I`m not sure how much of it is due to a long break, but I don`t think it will happen a lot in the future. I don`t think we will get breaks that long unless we get Covid-20," said Rabada.

Last week, two Proteas players had tested positive for COVID-19 and this forced their intra-squad practice match to be cancelled. England and South Africa will lock horns in the first T20I on Friday in Cape Town.