Indian cricket team to leave for the UK on June 2, families likely to be allowed on tour

Tags: ICC World Test Championship Final 2021, India tour of England, 2021, India

Published on: May 09, 2021

Indian cricketers will leave for their long tour of the UK on June 2 after completing the eight-day hard quarantine period in Mumbai. India will first take on New Zealand in the World Test Championship (WTC) final in Southampton from June 18-22, which will be followed by five Test matches against England.

According to a PTI report, the BCCI is still trying to negotiate the duration of the 10-day soft quarantine for Indian players on reaching the UK. A BCCI official was quoted as telling PTI, "Indian team will have eight days of hard quarantine (confined to hotel rooms) in India with mandatory negative RT-PCR reports on second, fourth and seventh day required to board the flight."

"Since we have a bubble to bubble transfer, it needs to be seen if the duration of the 10-day quarantine can be reduced a bit. However players during soft quarantine can go for training. In any case, Hotel Hilton where the teams will be put up in Southampton, is a part of the Ageas Bowl property," a source added.

The report also stated that the Indian players’ families will be allowed to be in England. However, it is unclear as to whether the family members will join the team at the start of the tour itself or after the WTC final. If the India-New Zealand Test ends on Day 5, it would be June 22. The first India-England Test is slated to begin on August 4.

The BCCI is also hopeful of the Indian players getting their first dose of vaccine before leaving for the UK. Question marks though remain over Prasidh Krishna, who recently tested COVID-positive.

"You have a gap between the time you test negative for COVID-19 and get your vaccination. So even if Prasidh tests negative by May 18th or 20th, he would need a four week gap before he gets his first dose," the source said.

Meanwhile, BCCI President Sourav Ganguly and Secretary Jay Shah are likely to attend the WTC final in Southampton.'

--By A Cricket Correspondent

Related News