BCCI not sending replacement: No replacement to be sent despite Covid-19 cases on England tour: BCCI

New Delhi: The five-match Test series between India and England has not even started and two Kovid-19 positive cases have come to the Indian camp. Indian team wicketkeeper batsman Rishabh Pant and training assistant Dayang Garani turned out to be Kovid-19 positive. Wriddhiman Saha, Abhimanyu Eswaran and bowling coach Bharat Arun have also had to go into isolation due to being in contact with Garani. Even in this troubled situation, the BCCI has refused to send players to England as a substitute.

The need for a substitute in the Indian team arose when Shubman Gill’s injury was detected. The team management wanted Prithvi Shaw and Devdutt Padikkal to be sent in place of Gill. However, the selectors did not accede to this request and said to use the players you have.

The number of Kovid-19 cases in England has increased in the recent times. There is a fear that these cases will increase, especially because the ECB has made it clear that it will not implement a strict bio-bubble protocol for the test series. Despite this, the BCCI does not want England to send any substitute.

According to the Indian Express report, the BCCI has refused to send the option to England despite Pant’s confirmation that he is Kovid-19 positive. The selection committee selected a 20-man squad for the tour of England and sent 4 players as standbys. These players were sent keeping in mind that if there is some incident, the reserve player should be included in the main team.

The Board is of the view that adequate backups are being sent to all the departments and hence the need should not arise. The BCCI official also talked about the inclusion of Abhimanyu Eswaran in the main team. He said that if Shubman Gill is injured, then reserve player Eswaran should be included in the main team. The official also said that it is the decision of the team management. He said, ‘This decision is to be taken by the selectors and the team management. BCCI does not interfere in selection matters.