Reports | India to wait for Rohit Sharma’s availability for England Test, Mayank Agarwal called up

According to the latest development reported by Cricbuzz, the BCCI and the Indian team management will wait for Rohit Sharma's availability and will not announce a stand-in captain yet for the postponed fifth Test against England, to be played between July 1 and 5. Rohit, India's full-time captain across formats, is currently in isolation after testing positive for Covid-19, and at present, the Indian squad only have a single designated opener available in Shubman Gill. So, the BCCI has decided to bring in Mayank Agarwal as a cover.

"Rohit Sharma may have tested positive for Covid and gone into isolation but the team management, the selectors and even the BCCI are not pressing the panic button to announce a stand-in captain as yet. All concerned seem to be biding time to see how things pan out with the touring side," the Cricbuzz report read.

"A final decision has not yet been taken but there may be efforts to fly Mayank Agarwal to Birmingham to be with the side in time for the July 1-5 Test in the next few days. Rohit can always come back and play if he tests negative before the Test as there are no mandatory quarantine protocols in England for a Covid positive test result."

If Rohit fails to return a negative Covid-19 test, India will have three captaincy options in Jasprit Bumrah, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Rishabh Pant. Virat Kohli, who led India to take a 2-1 lead last year in the series, might not be chosen again because of his own decision of stepping down from the position. The decision can be made in the last minute as things stand.