Team India captain Rohit Sharma shares selfie while being in isolation after testing positive for COVID-19
There is no clarity regarding Team India skipper Rohit Sharma's availability for the rescheduled fifth Test against England after he was found to be positive for COVID-19 following a Rapid Antigen Test on Saturday.
Rohit Sharma is currently placed in isolation and it remains to be seen whether he will recover in time for the one-off Test. Amid all the speculation, the right-handed batter shared a selfie with a thumbs-up on his Instagram story earlier today (Monday).
It is worth mentioning that the fifth Test between the two cricketing giants was postponed last year after a COVID-19 outbreak in the Indian camp. The fixture is scheduled to be played at Edgbaston in Birmingham from July 1.
Virat Kohli led the Indian side in the first four matches of the rubber. India currently have a 2-1 lead and have a significant chance of securing a Test series win on English soil for the first time since 2007.
If Rohit Sharma isn't available for the England Test, senior pacer Jasprit Bumrah or wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant could be handed captaincy duties for the crucial tie. While KL Rahul was set to be Sharma's deputy, he was ruled out of the series due to a groin injury.
Opening batter Mayank Agarwal has been added to India's squad for the Test as a back-up for Sharma. The 31-year-old left for England on Monday (June 27) and will immediately be in contention to play the game without needing to undergo any quarantine, as per the new rules of the government.
NEWS - Mayank Agarwal added to India’s Test squad as a cover for captain Rohit Sharma, who tested positive for COVID-19.
More details here - bcci.tv/articles/2022/… #ENGvIND https://t.co/f5iss5vIlL
India vs England 2022 squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Srikar Bharat (wk) and Mayank Agarwal
One addition for the fifth Test against @BCCI as @sambillings joins the squad! 🏴🏏
#ENGvIND
England: Ben Stokes (c), James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Sam Billings (wk), Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes (wk), Jack Leach, Alex Lees, Craig Overton, Jamie Overton, Matthew Potts, Ollie Pope, Joe Root.