''Everyone was worried about their personal and their family’s health''- Shardul Thakur on Indian player's mindset after Yogesh Parmar tested positive
Seam-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur has revealed that the general feeling in the Indian camp was of uncertainty after head coach Ravi Shastri, bowling coach Bharat Arun and fielding coach R. Sridhar tested positive for Covid-19 during the Oval Test against England.
The Indian coaching staff tested positive for the deadly virus midway through the fourth Test at the Oval. The infected members were immediately sent into isolation.
Recalling the same in an exclusive interview with 'The Indian Express', Thakur said while there was uncertainty regarding the immediate future, the Indian team was focussed firmly on the game.
He said:
"I heard someone whispering about it and the general feeling was what will happen next. As the match was on, everyone was focused on the game. It was first time we were without our main support staff."
The 29-year-old added that the coaching staff used to interact with the players after the end of the day's play.
"They used to call us at the end of the day. I spoke to Bharat Arun Sir, he spoke about what kind of line and length I can bowl. If they had any points they used to tell us after the game."
Despite all the distractions, the Indian players ensured to keep their focus on the game as they scripted a brilliant 157-run-win on the final day to earn a 2-1 scoreline.
'We were worried about what will happen'- Shardul Thakur
Heading into the Old Trafford Test with a 2-1 lead and a possible series win in England for the first time since 2007, the Kohli-led side were on the cusp of becoming the first Indian team to win a Test series in Australia and England.
However, disaster struck on the eve of the match when junior physio Yogesh Parmar tested Covid positive. With Parmar being in close contact with virtually every player, the entire team was understandably petrified of catching the virus.
Recalling the same, Shardul said that the players had reached a vulnerable state as they were worried about their and their family's health.
Thakur revealed:
"We were worried about what will happen, who will be infected since Parmar had treated everyone. We didn’t know how things would go ahead because tracking this infection is next to impossible. The next four-five days were vulnerable for us because there was fear that it could happen to me or it could happen to anyone. Everyone was worried about their and their family’s health."
The Old Trafford Test was eventually called-off hours before the scheduled start after Indian players showed their reluctance to play.
BREAKING: The fifth #ENGvIND Test in Manchester has been cancelled https://t.co/xQJKmJGfQa
The status of the series has not yet been decided. The BCCI has reportedly offered the ECB a one-off Test and two additional T20Is during India's white-ball tour next summer on the condition that there be no demand for forfeiture.
The ECB, meanwhile, have reportedly written to the ICC to decide the status of the series and if both boards fail to arrive at a conclusion, the matter will then be resolved by the Dispute Committee.