Question marks over Shaw, Yadav flying to England as they isolate after Krunal Pandya tests positive in Sri Lanka

Tags: India tour of Sri Lanka, 2021, Sri Lanka vs India, 2nd T20I at Colombo, Jul 28, 2021, India, Sri Lanka, covid19, Suryakumar Ashok Yadav, Prithvi Pankaj Shaw, Krunal Himashu Pandya

Published on: Jul 28, 2021

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The second T20I of the series between India and Sri Lanka has been postponed by a day after India all-rounder Krunal Pandya tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday. The match will now be played on Wednesday, July 28 at the R Premadasa stadium in Colombo. Krunal and eight other close contacts have been placed in isolation. According to reports, the close contacts include Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav, who were due to fly to England for the Test series. As of now, no latest COVID cases have been reported from the Sri Lankan camp.

The BCCI said in an official statement, "The second T20I between Sri Lanka and India originally scheduled to be played on July 27 has been pushed forward by a day and will now take place on Wednesday, July 28.

"Following the Rapid Antigen Tests conducted ahead of the match on Tuesday morning, Team India all-rounder Krunal Pandya was found to be positive. The Medical Teams have identified eight members as close contacts.. The entire contingent is undergoing RT-PCR tests today to ascertain any further outbreak in the squad," the BCCI statement added.

Earlier, the India-Sri Lanka series had to be rescheduled after Lanka’s batting coach Grant Flower and a video analyst had tested COVID positive ahead of the series. Meanwhile, in England, wicketkeeper batsman Prithvi Shaw had also returned a positive test. He recently rejoined the Indian team after spending some time in isolation.

With Pandya testing positive and Suryakumar Yadav and Prithvi Shaw in isolation, their departure for England could be impacted. On Monday, BCCI announced the two as replacements for the injured players in England. A BCCI press release stated, “All-rounder Washington Sundar had taken an injection on his right-hand bowling finger. However, his recovery will take longer than expected and he is not bowling-fit. He is ruled out of the remainder of the tour. Fast bowler Avesh Khan suffered a blow to his left thumb on Day 1 of the warm-up game. He was taken for an X-Ray and the result confirmed a fracture. A specialist was consulted for further management of his injury. He is ruled out of India’s Tour of England."

"Bowling coach B. Arun, Wriddhiman Saha and Abhimanyu Easwaran have completed their self-isolation in London and have now joined Team India in Durham. The All-India Senior Selection Committee has named Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav as replacements," the statement concluded.

India won the ODI series against Sri Lanka 2-1 and are leading the 1-0 in the T20Is as well.

--By A Cricket Correspondent

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