After Krunal, two more Indian players test positive for Covid-19

Yuzvendra Chahal and Krishnappa Gowtham have returned a positive test for Covid-19 in Sri Lanka on Friday, July 30. The infected duo, along with teammate Krunal Pandya who was the first to be exposed to the virus, will remain isolated in the island nation for the time being, as per Cricbuzz.

Both Chahal and Gowtham, who were among the group of eight players deemed close contacts of Krunal, had tested negative for COVID-19 on July 27. Krunal had tested positive on the same day and was shifted elsewhere, the report stated.

Chahal and Gowtham, along with six other close contacts (Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Manish Pandey, Prithvi Shaw, Ishan Kishan and Deepak Chahar) were isolated from the rest of the squad but kept in the team hotel.

Earlier on Tuesday, Krunal tested positive for the dreaded virus after rapid antigen tests were conducted ahead of the second T20I. Following his positive test result, the second T20I, originally scheduled to be played on Tuesday, July 27, was postponed to Wednesday. BCCI’s medical team had identified eight members of the Indian contingent as close contacts, who were barred from further participation in the series.

The series was earlier put in grave danger when Sri Lanka’s batting coach Grant Flower and data analyst G T Niroshan tested positive for the dreaded virus ahead of the series opener. As a result, the commencement of the limited-overs assignment had to be pushed back by five days, with the series finally kicking off on July 18 instead of July 13. It also meant an extended quarantine period for the touring party.