All Indian players test negative for coronavirus

All members of the Indian cricket team, including the isolated five, and support staff have test negative for coronavirus after undergoing a RT-PCR test on Sunday. Amid an investigation into a potential biosecurity protocols breach after five India players — Rohit Sharma, Prithvi Shaw, Rishabh Pant, Shubman Gill and Navdeep Saini — had gone to a restaurant in Melbourne, the news of all the members testing negative will come as a big relief.

“Playing members of the Indian Cricket Team and support staff underwent an RT-PCR Test for Covid-19 on January 3, 2021. All tests have returned negative results,” the BCCI said. India vice-captain Rohit, Shaw, Pant, Gill, and Saini made headlines after a fan, in a series of tweets, showed them eating indoors at a restaurant in Melbourne on New Year’s day. The fan claimed to have paid the bill of the Indian players at the restaurant also adding that he had hugged Pant. However, he put out a clarification tweet the next day, saying, “Pant never hugged me it was all said in excitement we maintained social distance all thru Apologies for miscommunication.” The Indian team is clear that it was a simple case of following all protocols and there was no reason to worry.The third Test of the Australia vs India four-match series is scheduled to start on January 7 at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).

Even as the Australian media keeps talking about an investigation of an alleged breach in the bio-bubble protocol by the five Indian players, the Indian team has shut the outside world as it focuses on the third Test between India and Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground, starting from January 7.