BCCI looking for replacements of Prithvi Shaw, Suryakumar Yadav for England series: Report

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is reportedly looking for replacements for Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav for the England series in light of the latest COVID-19 case inside the Indian camp in Sri Lanka. The Indian white-ball team in Sri Lanka suffered a major setback on Tuesday, July 27, when all-rounder Krunal Pandya tested positive for COVID-19. Following his positive result, eight players from the Indian camp who were identified as Krunal Pandya's close contacts were isolated for safety reasons. Shaw and Yadav, who were recently named to India's Test squad for the England series, are among the isolated players in Sri Lanka, and their ability to fly to the UK following the limited-overs series is now in doubt.

'Will monitor them for next couple of days'

The BCCI is now considering replacements for Shaw and Yadav, who were named to the Test squad in place of Shubman Gill and Washington Sundar. In an interview with InsideSport, a BCCI official stated that they will be closely monitoring Shaw and Yadav for the next few days before deciding on their replacements. According to a BCCI official, it has not yet been determined whether Shaw and Yadav will be dropped from the Test squad, but the decision will be made in the coming days. Both batsmen missed the second T20I against Sri Lanka on Wednesday, July 28, as they were still in isolation along with other close contacts of Krunal Pandya. 

Shaw and Yadav were added to the Test squad courtesy of their outstanding performance against Sri Lanka in the ongoing white-ball series. According to reports, the team management in England was very satisfied with Shaw and Yadav's performance in the ODI series against England. While Suryakumar scored a total of 124 runs in the three-match series, Shaw provided a good start to India on two occasions - in the first and third ODIs. As far as the Test series against England is concerned, the five-match encounter will begin on August 4 and last until mid-September.  

India’s Test squad: Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), R. Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohd. Shami, Md. Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, KL Rahul, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prithvi Shaw, Suryakumar Yadav.

Image: PTI