IND vs SL 2nd T20 postponed – How Krunal Pandy got Covid-19 positive? In another curious case of Covid-19 breaching bio-bubble, Krunal Pandya has tested positive on Tuesday, forcing the 2nd T20 against Sri Lanka in Colombo to be postponed by a day. But what is more surprising is that the Taj Samudra hotel in Colombo has been booked entirely by Shikhar Dhawan led Team India to avoid such a virus fiasco. The hotel staff are also tested daily and are in an undeclared bio-bubble, rendering both BCCI and SLC (Sri Lanka Cricket) confused about how Krunal contracted the virus.
As per a report by ESPNcricinfo, there have been no reports of a bio-bubble breach in the Sri Lanka series with all the players, support staff, groundsmen and even the hotel staff being regularly tested.
IND vs SL 2nd T20 postponed: Professor Arjuna de Silva, who supervises SLC’s bubble protocols, told ESPNcricinfo that he was confused as to how Krunal Pandya contracted the virus as the series was being played behind closed doors and the bio-secure bubble was intact with no reports of breach and irregularities. Even the movements of the staff are restricted within the hotel and players’ till the ground.
IND vs SL 2nd T20 postponed: The good news is that no other players or staff from either side has tested positive so far. However, the cloud over the series remains if further members of the squad test positive. As many as 8 members of Team India have been put into isolation awaiting RT-PCR test results. The Sri Lankan players are also set for another round of RT-PCR tests on Wednesday morning and any positive result could jeopardize the series.
“As per COVID-19 protocols, the players are being tested. So far, no one has tested positive. However, the players are essentially in isolation and would only be able to step out after the test result returns negative,” an SLC official told InsideSport.
IND vs SL 2nd T20 postponed: How did Krunal Pandya contract COVID-19?
While Krunal Pandya’s positive case has stunned everybody, it is believed that SLC’s one fatal flaw could be behind this. As per reports in Sri Lankan media, a few days before the series, a group of groundsmen were called from Kandy to Colombo. However, none of them was tested and they were given direct entry to the ground.
In their presence, Sri Lankan cricketers practised ahead of the series. The stunning revelation is that among the groundsmen, one returned a positive result. The entire group was put into isolation later. While the exposure remains limited, the possibility of contracting the virus from the groundsmen cannot be ruled out.
However, if Krunal Pandya returns positive in the RT-PCR test, it will surely put Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav’s travel plan to England in jeopardy. Both were supposed to leave for England immediately after the T20 series to join Virat Kohli led Team India after they were called as backups. It is believed that both are among the 8 close contacts of Krunal Pandya. In case of a positive result, both will have to stay in isolation for 7 days and won’t be allowed to travel to England where they will be in a further 10-day quarantine
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