Mumbai: With the coronavirus still active, the Indian cricket team, both men and women made their first top, at the Grand Hyatt hotel in for their eight-day hard quarantine, here on Tuesday.
The entire team with their support staff and the players along with their skipper Virat Kohli, his deputy Rohit Sharma and coach Ravi Shastri joined the England-bound squad’s bio-bubble along with the women’s team who also take off to England. The teams are expected to fly out on June 2 after all the playing and non-playing members return three negative RT-PCR results.
The men's team will first take on New Zealand in the World Test Championship final against New Zealand from June 18 before a full series against England. The women are scheduled to take on the hosts in one Test, three ODIs, and as many T20 Internationals starting June 16.
According to BCCI sources, it is given to understand that, Wriddhiman and Prasidh Krishna joined the bubble two days back after recovering fully from COVID-19.
On the other hand, the women are scheduled to take on the hosts in one Test, three ODIs, and as many T20 Internationals starting June 16.
"The team has already taken the first dose here after the government opened the vaccination process for all above 18. The second dose will be administered by the UK health department once the players are eligible to get the second jab as per rules," according to BCCI sources.
It is learned that approval for allowing the players' families is still awaited but the BCCI is hopeful that it would be done soon.
"We can't have our players being away from their families for three months and that too in a bubble. That's never great for mental health," justified the BCCI source about the stress the players would be being away from their near and dear ones for over three months, as the negotiation on quarantine duration once the side reaches England is still on and the hard quarantine (confined to hotel rooms) could be shortened.