Manchester Test Going Ahead as Scheduled; India Set to Make Changes in XI
Ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah has bowled 151 overs across 4 Tests and is likely to be rested.
India at a training session before the Lord's Test against England.
Image: PTI
The fifth and final Test between India and England will happen as per plan in Manchester after the visiting players tested negative for COVID-19. There was uncertainty over the match being played after Indian physio Yogesh Parmar tested COIVD-19 positive on Thursday.
Parmar had been monitoring several players, including Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma – players with various niggles – during and after the fourth Test that ended on Monday.
BBC Test Match Special tweeted: “The ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) say that all the India players PCR COVID Tests have come back negative and the Old Trafford Test goes ahead as planned."
The Indian team, who had been isolating after cancelling their Thursday practice, were to be moved to a bio-bubble for the remainder of their tour, according to Times of India.
However, late on Thursday evening, PTI reported that an India player was not too keen for the Test to go ahead and voiced his concerns about the situation becoming worse if a playing member tested positive on one of the match days.
Meanwhile before the recent COVID-19 positive test, all the players and the support staff are fully vaccinated but both teams are not operating in strict bio-bubbles with life in UK almost back to normal.
There was even speculation that the ECB proposed that India forfeit the match in case reports of the players come out positive. However, India had turned down the idea and also returned negative reports.
The boards, BCCI and ECB, had met in an emergency meeting on Thursday evening to discuss whether it would be feasible to host the fifth and final Test due to the emergence of the latest Covid-19 positive.
Changes for India
The Indian team management are also considering changes for the line-up with Jasprit Bumrah set to be rested after having bowled 151 overs in the series. Mohammed Shami is likely to take his place.
Ravindra Jadeja has been suffering from a muscle injury and is set to be replaced by R Ashwin, who has not played a Test yet in the series.
(with PTI inputs)
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