Pat Cummins aborts $50k donation to PM-CARES amid online pressure; picks other COVID fund

Australian cricketer Pat Cummins, who became the talk of the town in India last month after he promised to donate $50,000 to PM-CARES Fund to support the country's fight against COVID-19, has revealed that he has "ended up allocating his donation" to UNICEF Australia. Cummins took to social media on Monday, where he revealed that he has donated the money to UNICEF Australia's 'India COVID-19 Crisis Appeal', an initiative started in partnership with Cricket Australia and the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) to help tackle the ongoing crisis in India. 

When Cummins announced his plan to help tackle the Oxygen shortage in India by donating to PM-CARES Fund, many had appealed to him on social media to divert his contribution to some other organisation, claiming the 'fund lacks accountability'. It was not clear whether Cummins had already donated the amount to PM-CARES Fund, but the Australian pacer, who plays for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL, has now revealed that he has allocated the sum to UNICEF Australia's fundraising campaign. Cummins apparently donated $50,000 to the campaign some 21 hours ago, as per information on the latest donations being displayed on UNICEF's webpage. The campaign has raised more than $73,000 as of today to help India's fight against COVID-19. Meanwhile, Pat Cummins has isolated himself after two of his teammates tested positive for COVID-19.

Several players and franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL) followed Cummins' footsteps and made contributions in their own capacity to help India battle the deadly disease. Rajasthan Royals (RR) was the first team to contribute to the fight as the franchise announced a donation of more than $1 million. Punjab Kings, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and others also joined the initiative and donated for the same. Cricketers such as Shikhar Dhawan, Hardik Pandya, Sheldon Jackson, Nicholas Pooran, etc, also announced that they will be helping the cause.  

COVID infiltrates IPL bio-bubble

Meanwhile, the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) suffered another setback as two Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) players tested positive for COVID-19 today, ahead of their match against Royal Challengers Bangalore. IPL said that Varun Chakravarthy and Sandeep Warrier were found to be positive in the third round of testing in the last four days and have been isolated until further notice. The match between RCB and KKR stands rescheduled as of now. 

(Image Credit: IPL)