Picture Credit: Twitter
Indian men’s cricket team captain Rohit Sharma has tested positive for COVID-19, days before the start of the rescheduled fifth Test match against England. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) informed the news via an official release and also shared the news on their social media handles.
BCCI’s tweet said, “#TeamIndia Captain Mr Rohit Sharma has tested positive for COVID-19 following a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) conducted on Saturday. He is currently in isolation at the team hotel and is under the care of the BCCI Medical Team.”
The board also released a statement reading that he is currently in isolation at the team hotel and is under the care of the BCCI Medical Team. An RT-PCR test will be conducted on Sunday to ascertain his CT value.
This news comes after India’s third day's play of the warm-up match against Leicestershire. Sharma had scored 25 in the first innings before not batting in the second. Previously, R Ashwin also tested positive before his arrival on the tour which led to a delay.
In the absence of Rohit Sharma, the team’s vice-captain KL Rahul, Jasprith Bumrah could lead the team in the final Test. The Gujarat-born pacer was made the vice-captain in the three-game series against South Africa at the start of the year. Similarly, when asked whether he is up to taking up the challenge, Bumrah while speaking at a press conference, said that he is ready to take up the captaincy.
“If given an opportunity, it would be an honour. I don’t think any player would say no. There’s no bigger feeling than that,” Bumrah had said back then. “I don’t like to chase things because I don’t want to… See I am a person who believes that God has a plan and everything will find out its own way, so I don’t like to hamper the plan that is there. I try to never change anything.
“Whatever role is asked of me I would do it with the best ability that I can. I don’t want to change the whole organisation, you are always a leader when you are a senior member of the team so it’s just a post that comes with you,” he continued.