Opener Mayank Agarwal has beed to India’s Test squad for the rescheduled fifth Test as cover for captain Rohit Sharma by the All-India Senior Selection Committee.
According to a media release from the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Monday, Mayank has left for the UK and will link up with the squad in Birmingham.
Rohit, who tested positive for Covid-19 on Saturday evening as per the BCCI statement, is currently isolating and his availability for the match is not clear yet. As per the practices in the ongoing New Zealand vs England series, five-day isolation period has been the norm. It might be touch and go for the Indian captain based on his recovery.
The latest press release did not mention who the vice captain is. KL Rahul was named Rohit Sharma’s deputy in the original squad and while the board never confirmed it officially, he is believed to be receiving additional treatment for his injury in Europe. If Rohit is unavailable, it remains to be seen who leads the side.
India’s Test squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rishabh Pant (wk), KS Bharat (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohd Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Mayank Agarwal
More to follow...