Sri Lanka cricketers have been allowed to come out of quarantine after they returned negative reports for the COVID-19 PCR tests. However, the coaches and support staff are still in quarantine and will only come out on Wednesday as they are deemed as first contacts batting coach Grant Flower and team analyst GT Niroshan who were diagnosed with COVID-19.
The Sri Lankan men’s team has now been allowed to come out of isolation on Sunday. Each of the players remaining in the national squad returned negative reports for the PCR tests conducted to diagnose COVID-19.
However, the support staff and the coaches are still in quarantine and will continue to isolate themselves till July 14 as they were deemed as close contacts to batting coach Grant Flower and team analyst GT Niroshan. The latter two tested positive for COVID-19 over the last few days.
According to the doctors, the virus may have been picked up during Sri Lanka’s tour of England. Sri Lanka were in England till the first week of July where they played three T20Is and as many ODIs.
Three England players and four members of their support staff tested positive before being forced to quarantine themselves. The same was the case with the SL side after Flower and Niroshan returned positive reports for PCT tests. Both of them have been deemed to be in stable condition now, and Niroshan’s infection is asymptomatic.
Sri Lanka are scheduled to face India in a three-match ODI series and a three-match T20I series. The tour was originally scheduled to kickstart on July 13 with the ODI series. However, with the COVID-19 scare, it was pushed back by five days, and it will not kick off on July 18.
The next two ODIs are scheduled to be played on the 20th and 23rd of July (Tuesday and Friday respectively). Meanwhile, the T20Is will start on July 25 and the other two games are scheduled for 27th and 29th, respectively.
The Indian team, led by stand-in captain Shikhar Dhawan and stand-in coach Rahul Dravid landed in Sri Lanka on June 28 and have remained in a bio-bubble since their arrival. They were in hard quarantine for 14 days in Mumbai before they flew to Colombo, where they went through another hard quarantine for three days before they could start training and practice.
The 20-man side and the five net bowlers on the tour have already been involved in quite a few practice games. They have zero worries around COVID-19, and all the players seem fit and raring to go. The Sri Lankan side is likely to resume training in the coming days. Their first outdoor training ahead of the white-ball series against India is likely to take place on Tuesday, and the team doctors are very hopeful that the series will go ahead according to the latest schedule.
Sri Lanka will train at the Khettarama Stadium in Colombo, while the Indian team will continue to practice at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo. The two teams are also stationed at different hotels. Sri Lanka could have a new captain for the upcoming series as well.
According to reports, Kusal Perera is set to be replaced by Dasun Shanaka in white-ball cricket, and it is a consequence of Sri Lanka’s shoddy performances in white-ball cricket in the recent past.
