The Indian cricket board on Thursday confirmed that a player from the Indian Test squad in England has tested positive for Covid-19 and has been kept in isolation. The player -- which sources say is Rishabh Pant -- will undergo another test after a couple of days.
Asked by IANS about the Covid-19 case in the team, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCC)) vice-president Rajiv Shukla refused to divulge the name of the player but confirmed that a player has tested positive for Covid-19.
"One player has tested positive and has been kept in isolation. Today (Thursday, July 15) is the eighth day after the report of him testing positive came out. He will undergo another test after a couple of days," Shukla told IANS before adding that the rest of the squad is fine since the affected player was staying with acquaintances.
"He was staying with his relatives in the break and during that period caught the virus. He was away from the other members of the squad, which is why it hasn't affected the team and it is not isolation. The affected player is asymptomatic," added Shukla.
The Board vice-president confirmed that the affected player is staying with his relatives in isolation and won't travel to Durham, where the remaining squad will assemble for a camp beginning Thursday (July 15).
The Indian squad members, who had arrived in England in early June and had played the World Test Championship last month, were on a three-week break. Some of the players, as well as coach Ravi Shastri, visited sporting events like Wimbledon and Euro 2020 in London during the break.
Many stayed with relatives and acquaintances and are said to have travelled around as the country opened up. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is yet to officially name the player who has tested positive. Media reports claim that the player has been affected by the Delta variant.
The Covid-19 positive case in the Indian team puts a question mark on the warm-up game that is being planned by the England and Wales Cricket (ECB) on the Indian team's request ahead of the Test series that begins on August 4.
The England limited-overs squad too was affected by Covid-19 positive cases ahead of the recently-concluded ODI series against Pakistan, forcing the ECB to field a second-string side.
