Harshal Patel leaves RCB bubble after sister's death

Royal Challengers Bangalore fast bowler Harshal Patel has left the IPL bio-bubble following the death of his sister.

Harshal exited the bubble on Sunday after the game against Mumbai Indians on Saturday in Pune.

It is not clear yet for how long Harshal will remain unavailable for his team and he will miss at least one game, against Chennai Super Kings at the DY Patil Stadium on Tuesday. To re-enter the IPL bubble, he will need to undergo quarantine for a minimum of three days.

Harshal has been a standout player for Royal Challengers over the past couple of seasons and he took 2 for 23 on Saturday in the team's seven-wicket win over Mumbai Indians. He is their second-highest wicket-taker so far with his tally of six wickets, behind Wanindu Hasaranga's eight. Overall, he has picked up 84 wickets in the 67 IPL matches since debuting in 2012.

His breakthrough year came in 2021, when took the purple cap home with 32 wickets at an average of 14.34. He was also the top wicket-taker in the death overs last IPL with 19 wickets.

He was, however, not retained by Royal Challengers ahead of the mega auction earlier this year, before he was bought again by them for a whopping INR 10.75 crore (USD 1.4 million) - 53.75 times his previous salary of INR 20 lakh.

Harshal, 31, has played eight T20Is since making his international debut last year.