ENG vs IND 5th Test Postponed: ECB & BCCI Confirm first 2 days of the fifth Test has been postponed
ENG vs IND 5th Test: Day 1 of the 5th Test between India vs England has been postponed. ECB confirms 5th Test is postponed for 2 Days.
The prospects of the fifth and final Test between India and England starting at Old Trafford on Friday have received a significant boost. And all the players of the Indian team have tested negative for COVID-19.
Assistant physio Yogesh Parmar was found corona infected on Wednesday evening amid the possibility of the fifth test being done or not.
Ever since Parmar’s COVID test positive. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has concerned about the impact of the incident on the second leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Which begins in the UAE from September 19.
On September 15, the Indian team and most of the England players will leave on charter flights from Manchester to Dubai to join their respective IPL franchises.
According to a report in Cricinfo, the BCCI does not want the IPL to be affected for any reason. As the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman are set to host the men’s T20 World Cup just two days after the IPL ends on October 15.
Match will go as per Schedule
On Thursday morning, the top BCCI officials held an online meeting. The Indian team management, including captain Virat Kohli and head coach Ravi Shastri, have to find a way forward.
The Indian players are understood to be worried. Although they have left the final decision to the BCCI.
There was a lot of discussion between the BCCI and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) about going ahead with the series. The BCCI had proposed to cancel the last Test match. In case if more positive cases emerged.
However, the ECB flatly refused to do so. He said that if India does not play the match. It will be marked as a defeat for Team India and the series will be tied at 2-2. Also, the BCCI would have to compensate for the loss caused to the ground and the broadcasters. This figure is around Rs 300 crores.
However, if a player is suffering from corona while playing the World Test Championship. Then any match can be canceled according to the rules.
Under the WTC points system, now calculated on a percentage of available points. A side’s total points are not adversely affected by a series of four Test matches instead of five.
Without playing the final Test, India will win the trophy 2-1. And earn 26 WTC points while England will get 14 points out of 48.
