Rohit Sharma not yet ruled out, will undergo COVID test twice before Test match: Rahul Dravid

There have been a lot of speculations around Rohit Sharma’s availability for the rescheduled fifth and final Test match between India and England. He was tested positive for COVID-19 during the team’s warm-up game and has been in isolation since then. However, several reports earlier in the day stated that he tested positive again and was ruled out of the Test match. Perhaps, a few other reports also stated that Jasprit Bumrah is set to lead India in the Birmingham Test.

Meanwhile, India head coach Rahul Dravid has brought an end to all the speculations. He has confirmed that the Indian captain is not yet ruled out of the Test and is being monitored by the medical team. Dravid also went on to inform that Rohit Sharma will undergo a couple more COVID tests – one on Wednesday (June 29) evening and the other on Thursday morning – before a final call on his playing condition is taken.

“Rohit Sharma is not yet ruled out. Still, 36 hours to go, he (Rohit) will undergo a Covid Test today and one tomorrow. He is being monitored by our medical team. Obviously, he needs to come up with a negative report. But we still have a couple of days,” Dravid said in the press conference on Wednesday (June 29).

Rahul Dravid tight-lipped about Bumrah leading in Rohit’s absence

Another report doing the rounds is about Jasprit Bumrah leading team India if Rohit Sharma fails to recover from COVID-19 in time for the Test match. However, Rahul Dravid chose not to open up on it and stated that it will be better if the news officially comes out when required. “It’s not fair for me to say it (on Bumrah becoming the captain). You’ll have to wait for official communication (through the selectors and the BCCI),” Dravid added.

If Bumrah indeed leads India in the Test against England, he will become the first fast bowler from the country after Kapil Dev to captain the country.