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Global COVID-19 Cases Top 30 Million; Israel Enters Second COVID-19 Lockdown; Corruption Scandals Complicates South Africa's COVID Response. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired September 18, 2020 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:23]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And this country, unless we buckle down and do a better job.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: From America to Europe and beyond, the coronavirus raging worse than ever with 30 million cases and counting.
There is no time for complacency.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying the lockdown is necessary, because of the surging number of coronavirus cases, numbers
that have consistently set and broken.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Israel is now the first country to head into its second general lockdown.
Then --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can show you, there's no corruption.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Corruption scandals complicating South Africa's COVID response. We introduce you to have a family who is bearing the brunt of that
corruption.
If you lock down, you kill the economy. If you don't, it seems you kill people. So what's the right way to fight this plague?
Well, we are connecting you this hour through London, Beijing, Johannesburg, Jerusalem, Copenhagen, Melbourne and more to find out.
I'm Becky Anderson. Very warm welcome to the show, because this hour this pandemic is nowhere near over. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Thirty million people have now been infected and like a snowball careening down a hill, it is getting worse faster than ever. There are three times as
many cases right now as we had just three months ago. You can see that clearly on this graph.
Look, my team have made a lot of these for you and I know it's lot to take in, but it really is worth taking a look because these graphs contain an
awful lot of vital information, including the fact that we are now closing in an a million people having lost their lives.
Well, the situation getting a lot worse in Europe. France, Spain and the U.K. are now seeing record increases, cases now tracking up just as they
are in the world's worst affected country, America. And while things there have seemed to be getting, well, somewhat under control, there are 30
states that are actually adding more cases compared to the week before.
Now, the original source of the pandemic, China, as you can see there, almost totally flat.
Well, there's perhaps no better example of the dilemma that I mentioned at the top of the show than Israel. The sun will soon set, marking the start
of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, beginning as Israel enters a second national lockdown.
It's the first country that we have seen to do that and it's all because of a drastic spike in new COVID-19 cases. You can see that here repeated,
daily highs in recent days. More than 6,000 just on Wednesday. Israel's first lockdown started in late March when it ended in may, the number of
new cases on any given day just around 20.
Oren Liebermann is in Jerusalem with the details on what is this new lockdown.
Just explain what we can expect and what the reaction has been there in Israel.
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Becky, I think the vast majority of the country here is frustrated, angry. Not understanding why this country
has entered a second general lockdown.
We saw the numbers rising a month, month and a half ago after a fairly good early summer in the late April, early May perhaps, even a great early
summer. But now, the cases have been spiking and they have been doing it for months.
And yet, the second general lockdown, part of the frustration about it is that there seems to be no clear path here. There's no clear directive, here
are the numbers here, if we get to this number we'll change the restrictions. Plus, those restrictions are being changed at the last
moment, including last night when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instead of tightening the restrictions loosened them, saying people can get go a
kilometer from their house, not just half a kilometer.
It's that sort of last minute change, the restrictions and frustrations about not knowing how bad it will be and how long it will last that's led
to the general sense of anger in this country about this second general lockdown and how bad the coronavirus situation is here.
ANDERSON: I mean, look, the -- I'm just wondering how this lockdown is going to affect these high holidays, these important days in the Jewish
calendar when so many people would normally be spending time with their families and at the synagogue.
[10:05:10]
What's the impact going to be as we go into this holiday season?
LIEBERMANN: So part of the frustration many have had over the coronavirus lockdowns, there's so many exceptions to them and some have joked it's a
lockdown unless you have an excuse to broke the lockdown. It comes across like that. So even there's a general lockdown, you're allowed to go to
synagogues and then there are restrictions on how many you can have in certain sectors, indoors and outdoors.
So there's this frustration about it. How will the high holidays be? Generally, you're only supposed to celebrate your immediate family as it
was over Passover, which was the other major holiday in the first lockdown.
So there's a sense of again, anger, frustration, as Israel heads into this lockdown which officially began three hours ago at this point.
ANDERSON: The failures of Israel's coronavirus battle, Oren, coming on the back drop of what the prime minister is touting as a foreign policy win.
The UAE and Bahrain have signed the accords for normalization with the country. How has the confluence of these two stories as it were, these two
layers, been playing out?
LIEBERMANN: Recent polling has shown a startlingly different response here. The vast majority of the country looks upon the agreements with UAE
and Bahrain very favorably. And yet, that has done nothing to shift public trust in the government. The majority of the country does not trust the
country to lead them out of the coronavirus, does not -- is not optimistic about where this country is and does not trust Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu.
It's like you're looking at the two sides of the entirely different country.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LIEBERMANN (on camera): On the South Lawn of the White House, it was the celebration Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wanted, and the distraction
he needed.
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: This week is Rosh Hashanah, Jewish new year, and what a blessing we bring to this new year. A blessing
of friendship. A blessing of hope. A blessing of peace.
LIEBERMANN: The ceremony with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain was a historic achievement of Netanyahu's foreign policy, a picture for the ages.
If only the success extended to his domestic policy.
Back at home, protests have swelled outside the prime minister's residence, where thousands of people have come out every week and called on Netanyahu
to resign. Unemployment remains about 18 percent according to the Israeli unemployment service and a fragile economy will take another hit with a
second general lockdown.
MK YAIR LAPID, ISRAELI OPPOSITION LEADER: We have a dysfunctional government. Bad at running a country and this is the worst failure of
Netanyahu ever experienced and we are experiencing it with him or because of him.
LIEBERMANN: Restaurant owners smashed plates in protest, frustrated as they face a closure that threatens their livelihoods. And then there's the
coronavirus.
(on camera): Netanyahu boasted about making peace with two Arab countries in 29 days from August 13th to September 11th. During that same time frame,
according to Ministry of Health data, there were 62,000 new cases of coronavirus, about a third since the beginning of the pandemic. And there
were 446 deaths in that same period. That's about 40 percent of those who have died.
(voice-over): Israel's coronavirus numbers have soared in recent weeks, among the highest in the world per capita. Schools, restaurants,
entertainment venues, all closed in this lockdown as Israel becomes perhaps the first country in the world to reimpose closure. The political situation
is hardly better.
A unity government meant to handle the coronavirus crisis has spent more time bickering about who's in charge and who to blame. The country last
passed a budget in 2018. The head of the budget division quit as did the head of the public health division.
YOHANAN PLESNER, ISRAEL DEMOCRACY INSTITUTE: Supposedly this should have been a national unity government that's steering us out of the crisis,
creating the necessary reforms to prepare us for the post-corona era and instead they're in total paralysis.
LIEBERMANN: Yet none of that is Netanyahu's biggest problem. Israel's longest serving prime minister has been charged with bribery and fraud and
breach of trust. He's maintained his innocence all along, attacking the attorney general, investigators and the judicial system, accusing them of
an attempted coup driven by the left wing and the media.
His trial begins in earnest in January when a panel of judges will begin hearing from witnesses. There will be no White House ceremony big enough to
draw attention away from those proceedings.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LIEBERMANN: As we enter the second lockdown, it's worth remembering what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday night when he announced in
lockdown, when he was asked about who's to blame here for the country being in a second lockdown.
[10:10:01]
He said there's no failures, only achievements.
ANDERSON: Oren Liebermann is in Jerusalem for you, folks. Thank you, Oren.
Clearly, a second lockdown isn't easy, socially, economically, politically, Israel though taking that risk.
Europe will not -- not so keen, it seems. That's despite the fact that the spread of the virus appears to be slipping out of control in some parts.
Case in point, the United Kingdom, scrambling to try to get a grip on a big rise in COVID cases.
See the last bit here on the end. That is a 167 percent jump in cases since the end of August.
Let's get to London and to CNN's Scott McLean.
The health secretary is refusing to rule out a second lockdown. Just how close to the cliff edge is the U.K., or at least England, in having to
reinforce these sort of strict restrictions?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, it's a great question, Becky, because while the U.K. is undoubtedly seeing a big spike in cases, the
number of hospitalizations at this point is still entirely manageable. Plus, the government has a lot more other measures it can take before it
resorts to that drastic step of a second national lockdown. For instance, it can close bars and close restaurants, impose wider mask mandates or
doing a better job of simply enforcing the rules that it already has on the books.
Right now, infections are being fuelled primarily by younger people, but they're starting to creep into the older segments of the population and
even getting into the care homes as well. All the while, the U.K. is trying to overcome a testing shortage despite the fact it's doing the most testing
of any country in Europe. And so, it's having to prioritize who actually gets them.
So, right now, more than a third of the tests are being earmarked for care homes alone.
The government is also expanding localized restrictions that effectively ban almost all in-person socializing with people outside of your own
household. And so, the health secretary says it is essential that people follow the rules that are in place but if things continue to get worse, he
always has the nuclear option. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT HANCOCK, BRITISH HEALTH SECRETARY: But a national lockdown is the last line of defense. It is as we saw in the spring it is the thing that we
can do to keep people safe if that's -- if that's needed. So we're watching vigilantly, but we can see this number of cases accelerating as you say.
And we're prepared to do what it takes to both protect lives and livelihoods and of course both are so important.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCLEAN: So, the WHO says that the numbers ought to be a wake-up call. The second wave has already eclipsed the first one, although it's less deadly.
Take France, for instance, where they're seeing two or three times as many cases now on a daily basis as they were back in April, yet the
hospitalizations are just 1/6. Or, Becky, take Spain, which saw more than 700 deaths over the past seven days. That's a massive number, but it is
still eight times fewer than they had at the first peak of this pandemic. And at least on paper, they have more confirmed cases now than they did
back then.
MCLEAN: Scott McLean is in London. Thank you, sir. Nice day in London there.
The U.S. administration doesn't miss a beat when it comes to blaming the pandemic on China, where things getting much worse between the two
countries throughout this pandemic period, of course.
And Taiwan could prove to be the last straw in what is this seemingly flailing U.S./China relationship. Beijing said it's conducting war games
near the Taiwan straits while the U.S. sends another high-level official to Taiwan. All this coming against the back drop of a miserable nose dive in
relations since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Well, China firmly opposing this weekend's visit to Taipei by Keith Crack, the undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the
environment. He's the State Department's highest level official to visit Taiwan in years. Beijing warns if the U.S. is trying to elevate Taiwan's
power in some way, the effort is, quote, doomed to be a dead end.
In virtually every sphere from economic ties to politics to military relations and in cyberspace, Washington's relationship with Beijing is now
as sour as ever and it's with Donald Trump at the helm who promised from the very beginning to take China on and take it on hard.
CNN's David Culver joining me now.
You just interviewed the outgoing U.S. ambassador to China, Terry Branstad, who's stepped down recently. People as I understand around him say he was
stepping down in order to allow him to campaign for President Trump.
[10:15:04]
What did the ambassador have to say to you, David?
DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He did say, Becky, that this is personal. That his decision to do this was between him and his wife and made the
decision they'd go back to Iowa. To your point though, we are hearing that it's to campaign for President Trump.
And I asked him if he'd be willing to campaign for the president, he said, if the president called, of course, he'd do it, he'd be happy to do it.
And the way that this interview went suggested that he was already in many ways in this campaign mode, and that he supported President Trump
throughout, including in placing blame on China. He was very vocal about this.
And it comes at a crucial point. I mean, you're looking at a moment where perhaps more than ever you need diplomatic experience, and what is arguably
an all-time low in U.S./China relations and yet here he is stepping out.
I say is this a diplomatic failure, I asked him that and he said he looks at the accomplishments, and this is something that you're going to hear
echoed in the campaign trail, no question, and the accomplishment they're looking at more than anything else is the phase one trade.
Becky, as you know, you've got several other issues at play. You've got Hong Kong's national security law, you've got Xinjiang and the widespread
allegations of human rights abuse. You've South China Sea, Taiwan as you pointed out, so many different elements here.
However, what we saw from the outgoing ambassador and what we heard in particular was an echoing of what president Trump has said with regards to
blaming China for this outbreak. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TERRY BRANSTAD, OUTGOING U.S. AMBASSADOR TO CHINA: The Chinese system was such that they covered it up and they even penalized the doctors that were
pointing it out at the very beginning. So the result was what could have been contained in Wuhan ended up becoming worldwide pandemic. And that was
what's so sad.
CULVER: What do you assess of President Trump's dealing with President Xi? Because you know what it's like to deal with Xi. President Trump's approach
has been well it's been a little bit all over the place, to be quite honest. Earlier this year he was saying that President Xi was a good
friend, complimenting his leadership, even as the outbreak was starting.
And now, we have seen he hasn't criticized President Xi by name but clearly slamming China and the party. Is that the right approach do you think?
BRANSTAD: There's been more telephone contact between President Trump and President Xi than any other American president with the Chinese leader.
And, initially, I think President Trump believed the Chinese when they said what they said about the virus and he and the rest of the world found out
that what they said was not true.
And misinformation and cover-ups occurred and the result was we are faced with a worldwide pandemic. And it's really I think the communist system of
China and their unwillingness to admit wrongdoing that caused this whole thing to happen. And that's the tragedy of it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: That's fascinating.
All right. That's the ambassador talking about COVID-19 and how that has impacted on relations between the two leaders. We talked about a very high
level trip to Taipei earlier. Let's also follow the money on that.
CULVER: Right.
ANDERSON: Potential weapon sales from the U.S. to Taiwan including mines, cruise missiles and drones as I understand it. The Trump administration
also stepping up military support for Taiwan in recent years through arms sales.
Connect this together for us, will you, David? How does Taipei fit into the wider relationship here between the two countries?
CULVER: Let's put it this way, Beijing is furious. This, Becky, is perhaps one of the -- if not the most sensitive issue when it comes to China and
the rest of the world.
Taiwan for them is territory. They do not see this as separate sovereignty. They see it as their own sovereignty.
And to their point now they're put up the war games that have started, the military drills in place now and that is a military flexing of might here
where they're trying to show that they will do whatever they need to, to defend their sovereignty. This is just another escalation, Becky.
ANDERSON: David Culver on the story for us -- thank you, David.
Still ahead, a CNN investigation puts the spotlight on a drop in funding for life saving aid to Yemen. Well, now, a major donor says it is sending
money there.
South Africa offered coronavirus patients a place to heal. What they got was something clearly different.
[10:20:01]
A look at where millions of aid money there may have gone.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Well, we have been to Jerusalem and we have been in Europe. We have looked at the United States. Now let's look at what's going on in
south Africa. Reported cases of COVID-19 astronomically high there, dominating the continent's top five worst hit countries with more than
655,000 infections.
But despite those rising cases, the government is reopening the country's borders to business and to tourism. Well, meanwhile, allegations of
government corruption only making things worse. Some scandals involve deals between officials and businesses, providing medical equipment, providing
food and emergency housing for those battling the virus.
David McKenzie tracked down some of those involved.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The ruling ANC Party flag covers Elsie Monyella's (ph) window. The floor of her newly- constructed
government home is already bending under the weight of just her and her 2- week old baby, Dipure (Ph).
Months after it was proudly unveiled, this emergency COVID housing project in Limpopo province is falling apart. Independent contractors told us they
could build permanent housing for less.
JERRY THEMA, TALANA RESIDENT: Everything is cheaper. You can see those things.
MCKENZIE (on camera): So where did the money go?
THEMA: I think they know, the know. The contractor and the person who gave the terms (ph) to the contractor.
MCKENZIE: Sir, it's David McKenzie from CNN. I'm a journalist. I'm looking to ask you about the Talana and Burgersfort developments.
PAKENG MOHLALA, AVENTINO GROUP (via phone): What about them?
MCKENZIE (voice-over): The contractor didn't say much on the phone. We still had questions.
(on camera): I thought it would be easier if we talk in person. How are you, sir?
MOHLALA: So you are insistent?
MCKENZIE: Yes, it would be great, because I think you want to get your side of the story across, if possible.
MOHLALA: What do you need?
MCKENZIE: Well, we wanted to know about the allegations that this was a tender that had inflated prices. It is now suspended, so I just want to
hear your point of view.
MOHLALA: No, there was no prices that were inflated on this term. The prices were fixed. This tender was given to more than 20 or 30 companies.
I'm just one of them.
I can assure you, my man. There is no corruption in this. That one, I'm 110 percent guaranteeing you.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): The housing development agency in charge of the tender refused to be interviewed, saying the project is under
investigation. The minister in charge wouldn't talk to us either.
CYRIL RAMAPHOSA, SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT: Every instance of alleged corruption must be thoroughly investigated.
[10:25:06]
MCKENZIE: South Africa's presidency also declined an on-camera interview.
Cyril Ramaphosa has promised to stamp out COVID-19 related graft, and it's a massive task. Many of the contracts under investigation, now made public,
were given to people connected to the ANC, including the president's own spokesperson, who stepped down after it became public that a $7.6 million
government PPE contract was initially awarded to her husband's company.
In a statement, the couple tonight corruption, but sought to cancel the contract, adding they deeply regret the error in judgment.
The special investigating unit told us they are looking into more than 700 companies linked to emergency COVID-19 contracts for possible crimes.
Contracts worth a staggering 7.5 billion rand, more than $400 million.
From PPE to water supply, to construction, South Africa's president describing the wave of corruption as a pack of hyenas circling wounded
prey.
RAMPHOSA: All money stolen or overpriced should be recovered.
MCKENZIE: For Elsie Monyella (ph), even this shack is better than the plastic shelter she used to live in. Without money, or political
connections, she says she is happy to accept whatever she's given.
David McKenzie, CNN, South Africa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, let's get you up to speed on the other stories that are on our radar right now.
For first time in five weeks, New Zealand has recorded a day with zero new COVID cases. More than 7,000 tests were processed on Thursday but none of
them came back positive. Last month, the cluster of cases in Auckland ended three transmission-free months in the country.
Well, in Jordan, a surge in cases in has closed schools for two weeks and led to warnings of up to a year in jail for those who organize large
gatherings. Now, these strict new penalties are aimed at wedding parties, funerals, or any other gathering of more than 20 people.
And London residents may be anxious to say good-bye to 2020 but it won't look like this. Because of the pandemic, Mayor Sadiq Khan has canceled the
traditional New Year's Eve fireworks in central London. He is looking for alternative celebrations that families can enjoy at home.
Well, Australia, which has some of the world's strictest COVID travel restrictions has now raised its cap on the number of citizens who can
actually return home from abroad.
For the last two months, only 4,000 Australian citizens were allowed to head home per week and the increase will bring that number to 6,000. Well,
the controversial cap was introduced in response to the country's second coronavirus wave in July with the prime minister citing pressures on its
mandatory hotel quarantine scheme.
Well, as we reported earlier in the week, tens of thousands of Australians are currently stranded abroad with no job, no visa, no health care and no
way to get home due to these caps. Many saying they feel utterly abandoned by their government. You can read some of their stories on CNN.com.
And we have been requesting comment from Prime Minister Scott Morrison, as well as other officials for several weeks. They have not responded. The
invitation as ever remains open.
We'll be back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:31:04]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK LOWCOCK, U.N. UNDER-SECRETARY GENERAL FOR HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS: Last year, we raised $3.3 billion for our response program in Yemen. This year,
we've only raised $1.3 billion. That missing $2 billion is the reason we're having this conversation, basically. That is why there is a clear and
present danger of a huge loss of life in famine and all the things that it brings with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Put another way, that statement effectively says the following. U.N. aid is a life line for tens of millions of people hit by the horrific
crisis in Yemen. And it is falling short.
Now, CNN reported earlier this week some of the key donors aren't meeting their commitments this year. Others not providing the support that the U.N.
had hoped for, including the U.S., Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, but now, Saudi Arabia says it will release more than $200 million
of the money it pledged for Yemen earlier this year.
Well, the announcement came just days after CNN reported on the shortfall.
Here is part of the report from CNN's Nima Elbagir.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's very hard to keep track of exact figures for child death because so many of
the children don't even make it to the hospital. All the doctor knows is that things are getting worse.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE, TRANSLATED TEXT: In August and September, our cases have spiked very clearly, most likely because of the withdrawal of support
from the NGOs and other centers having to close due to lack of funding.
ELBAGIR: Why is that? That lack of funding that Dr. Eshima (ph) was talking about. Eighty percent of the 30 million population in Yemen is
reliant on aid, the majority of whom live in the Ansarullah Houthi- controlled north.
The Houthis seeking to control the flow of aid placed restrictions on U.N. agencies in areas under their control. In March, the U.S. suspended much of
its aid to the north, citing concerns over Houthi misappropriation. Two other key donors, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, have also
drawn down.
The U.S., UAE and Saudi Arabia have all slashed their Yemen aid spend. The U.S. spend dropping from almost a billion to 411 million. Saudi from over a
billion to half that, with only 22 million actually received. The UAE has given zero dollars to the U.N.'s 2020 Yemen appeal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, Saudi Arabia says the newly approved funding is part of that half a billion dollars it already pledged for the year. As for the
other two donors the U.S. says it's still by far the largest contributor to humanitarian efforts in Yemen this year and the United States aid
organization U.S. aid says it continues to quote continue to support countryside U.N. operations and some of the NGO partners' life savings
activities in the north.
Meanwhile, the UAE said it has more than $6 billion provided between 2015 and the end of August 2020.
Well, Nima joins me now live from London.
On the ground, what does this money provide and how can countries ensure that cash gets to the men, women and children your report highlights and
the thousands more who are in dire need?
ELBAGIR: Well, Becky, this is a conflict in which food and food aid have been weaponized and they have weaponized by actors across the board.
Notably by the Houthis in the north and forces loyal to the nationally recognized government in the south and the separatists.
[10:00:07]
And that does have a huge effect on the food aid reaching its targeted recipients, no doubt. But as Mark Lowcock, the head of the U.N. office for
the coordination of humanitarian affairs told you a few days ago, none of that has the impact of just this slashing of aid contributions by key
countries like Saudi Arabia, the U.S. and the UAE. So this money from Saudi which was part of the originally pledged commitment will be incredibly
helpful but it only takes the U.N. budget for this year for Yemen to 37.1 percent of its needs.
It still needs so, so much and we're waiting to hear from the U.S., USAID, and from the United Arab Emirates to what they'll do to step up the
requirements, because we have been here before, Becky. Last year, there was an absolutely scandal about the misappropriation and the allegations of
misappropriation of aid by the Houthis, but the international community was able to fulfill 90 percent of the promised aid to the humanitarian
assistance program and it pulled the country back from the literal brink of famine.
This year, those requirements have not been met and in spite of Saudi Arabia going a little bit further with this money, Becky, it's a horrible
reality to have to communicate to our viewers in the world, but it's still not enough. Those children we showed on your show on Monday who are dying
of starvation will continue to die if the world does not step up and do so much more, Becky.
ANDERSON: One of the problems in Yemen, of course, is that you simply can't report on the ground from many areas, so it's very, very difficult to
actually get a picture of exactly what is going on. We only perhaps are telling only the tip of the iceberg here and the story on that tip is
awful.
Nima, thank you.
We'll take a short break and we'll be back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: It draws a show stopping half a billion eyeballs around the world. That is how big the Indian Premier League Series is and it is back
this weekend after being postponed in March. It is now taking place right here in the UAE.
India still not able to host the tournament because of the crippling COVID situation.
Well, the Rajasthan Royals have set off, but not in their kits as much as the PPE that you see here. And there's at least one young star ready to
make his debut.
[10:40:03]
This is a fantastic story.
CNN's Vedika Sud has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VEDIKA SUD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dawning a pink and purple jersey, Yashasvi Jaiswal, set to debut in Indian Premier League. He's now
part of the Rajasthan Royals, the franchise bought the cricketer for over $337,000, a staggering sum.
ZUBIN BHARUCHA, DIRECTOR OF CRICKET, RAJASTHAN ROYALS: We asked him to come for a trial and what he did at that moment when he walked into bat,
the very first ball he walked across the stumps and flicked it in for four. We just stopped and stared and wondered if there's something really special
here.
SUD: It hasn't been a special journey for Jaiswal. He was only 8 when he left his family and village to pursue cricket in Mumbai. His father, an
owner of paint shop, didn't have the means to sponsor him nor the heart to cut short his dream.
For over three years, Jaiswal was alone and homeless. After living at a relative's house and then a dairy shop, he stayed in a tent on a cricket
field for three years.
JASHASVI JAISWAL, RAJASTHAN ROYALS CRICKETER: There were no electricity, no -- there were not good water, not food. You have to make your own food
and, you know, at that time, my parents did -- they didn't afford that much money.
SUD: Struggling to make ends meet, Jaiswal sold food as a street vendor, hungry or broke, he continued practicing the game.
JAISWAL: Sometimes I really missed my mom. If I wanted to meet her but I couldn't then that time I -- I was crying, you know, alone, sitting by the
wicket.
SUD: The turning point in Jaiswal's life came when he was 12. A cricket coach Jwala Singh saw him pitching and decided to test his talent.
JWALA SINGH, CRICKET COACH: I told him that from tomorrow onwards, you will come to my academy at India, and I will see you for the next seven
days, and if I find something in you, and then definitely, I will help you out.
SUD: And from that point, there was no looking back. The cricketer made his mark in the sport in 2015 when he scored 319 runs in a single match and
took wickets into the two innings for his school team. Awards and praise followed as being selected for Mumbai's under 16 squad and then India's
under 19s.
Jaiswal is the youngest double century in the world in 50-over cricket, and he was the top-run score in the under 19 World Cup earlier this year.
JAISWAL: I just want to play cricket as much as I can and I really love it.
SUD: Very few get the opportunity to share the dressing room with international cricketers, (INAUDIBLE) Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler. Jaiswal
is living that dream.
JAKE LUSH MCCRUM, COO, RAJASTHAN ROYALS: What he had overcome is immense and how -- how humble he is I think even now is a -- yeah, just shows the
quality of him as an individual.
SUD: Jaiswal's story not only one of rags to riches but an inspiring example of perseverance. His ultimate dream is to wear India's senior
cricket team jersey some day.
Vedika Sud, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, Don Riddell is with me.
Rags to riches is somewhat of a cliche, isn't it, but what a story of perseverance and defying the odds, Don.
DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yeah, amazing. I mean, that just plays like a Bollywood film script, doesn't it? Yeah, I mean, so much information and
so many images in the wonderful report.
The one that sticks with me is the makeshift blue tent. Can you imagine living in that at such a young age away from your family hoping to make it?
But these are the athletes that do make it because they're so committed to what trying to do and that is a career I really look forward to following
him over the next few years, because he's clearly special.
ANDERSON: Absolutely. Don is back with your "WORLD SPORT" after this break. Stay with us with.
(WORLD SPORT)
[11:00:00]
END
