India squad for WTC Final gets relieving update from BCCI, board comments on vaccines

After the IPL suspension was announced, Team India and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have ramped up their preparations for the World Test Championship final 2021, set to be held in England next month. The India vs New Zealand final date is June 18, but the Men in Blue will begin their preparations as early as May 25, almost a month prior to the showpiece event. The India squad for WTC Final will enter a bio-bubble in India itself, before travelling to England where they will undergo another mandatory quarantine. 

World Test Championship final 2021: Virat Kohli and co. to enter bio-bubble in India before UK quarantine 

As per reports from ANI, the Indian team for the World Test Championship final enter a bio-bubble in India itself, before travelling to the UK, where they will undergo a mandatory 10-day quarantine. According to the source, the players will enter the India bio-bubble on May 25 and remain there for eight days. The team will be tested regularly for COVID-19, while will remain quarantine as no movement in and out of the bubble will be allowed. The Men in Blue will land in the UK on June 2, where they will undergo another 10 days of mandatory quarantine.

However, the players can resume training while UK, having moved across from the bubble in India to the one in England via a charter flight. The bubble-to-bubble transfer allows players to resume training, but they will continue to be regularly tested, and no movements will be allowed. Following the WTC Final, the team will take on England in a five-match Test series, which will end on September 14, marking more than three months of their stay in the UK. 

The source mentioned that families of the players will be allowed to travel as a result. He also revealed that the BCCI are looking on working closely with the England and Wales Cricket Board and the UK government to get the second dose of the vaccine to the players while on the tour. If that plea is rejected, the vaccine will be transported from India to the UK. The India vs New Zealand final date is scheduled for June 18-22. 

India squad for WTC Final 

Squad: Virat Kohli (capt), Ajinkya Rahane (vice-capt), Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, KL Rahul (subject to fitness clearance), Wriddhiman Saha (wk; subject to fitness clearance). 

Standby players: Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan, Arzan Nagwaswalla

(Image Courtesy: BCCI Twitter)