ENG vs IND | BCCI not pressing alarm button despite Rohit Sharma’s COVID-19 result

Indian captain Rohit Sharma tested positive for COVID-19 just mere days before the launch of the final Test against England. The result was announced after a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) was conducted on Saturday, June 25.

As it turns out, the BCCI and the Indian team management are not pressing any alarm button to announce a replacement as yet.

As per a Cricbuzz report, the Indian board is not looking to announce a stand-in captain as yet.

Apart from his leadership role, Rohit Sharma is also one of only two regular Test openers as part of the expanded Indian squadron in England, with Shubman Gill being the other one. There were reports of flying Mayank Agarwal to England as Gill’s last-minute opening partner in the Indian camp. However, no official announcement has been made by the BCCI.

The match, scheduled to commence from July 1 onwards, might see the return of Sharma if he tests negative in the coming days. There are no mandatory quarantine protocols in England for a positive COVID-19 result, and the cricketer himself is being monitored by the touring medical team.

If Sharma fails to recover in time, there might be an announcement for a stand-in skipper at the last moment, if not early. The report further states that a final decision on captaincy will be made once Chief Selector Chetan Sharma would reach England after India’s ongoing and separate white-ball series in Ireland.

The visiting Indian team recently played a four-day tour game against Leicestershire at Grace Road. The match witnessed former captain and India’s batting trump card Virat Kohli showing signs of promise at the crease.

The tour match ended in a draw and the action will now shift to Birmingham’s Edgbaston for the fifth and final Test match.