Team India players to undergo 3 COVID-19 tests at home before reaching Mumbai: Reports

Ahead of the eagerly awaited ICC World Test Championship final between the top two Test sides- India, and, New Zealand next month, it has been learned that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the protocols for the quarantine rules and COVID-19 tests for the one-off Test match.

As per the protocols, the players will need to undergo three COVID-19 tests at home before they all assemble in Mumbai next Wednesday i.e. May 19. Apart from that, they must also undergo a 14-day quarantine in India before departing to the United Kingdom on June 2.

'The players will be undergoing three RT-PCR tests at their homes': Source

“The players will be undergoing three RT-PCR tests at their homes and once they return negative tests, they will be assembling in Mumbai on May 19. Everyone in the contingent will be undergoing 14-day quarantine in India before they leave for the UK on June 2,” the source said as quoted by ANI.

Both teams in dire need of an ICC title

Both teams will be looking to gain dominance in the longest format of the game by winning the biggest prize in Test cricket. While India will be eager to avenge their heart-breaking World Cup 2019 semi-final loss, the Black Caps on the other hand will be hoping to make amends by winning a major silverware for the first time in 21 years. The Kiwis had made it to the deciders of the previous two editions of the World Cup (2015 & 2019) but could not succeed in going all the way. In fact, they had agonizingly fallen short in the 2019 edition where both England and New Zealand were tied at the identical score of 241 after regulation time as the English team eventually went on to left their maiden World Cup trophy due to an infamous boundary count rule.

India on the other hand have failed to win an ICC event after the 2013 edition of the Champions Trophy. In fact, they have made it to the semi-finals thrice (World Cup 2015, World T20 2016 & World Cup 2019) and have also made two final appearances (ICC World T20 2014 & ICC Champions Trophy 2017) but could not succeed in going all the way as the Men In Blue ran out of fire & brimstone during crunch games.