Indian players Rohit Sharma, S Gill, R Pant, N Saini, and P Shaw have come under the scanner after a fan posted a video of them on social media, having dinner in an indoor restaurant in Melbourne. These players are now being isolated and an investigation is pending to check whether they violated the bio-secure bubble. Under these circumstances, questions arose on the availability of these players for the third Test between Australia and India. However, an Australian newspaper has reported that R Sharma, S Gill, and R Pant will still play in the 3rd Test.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, BCCI won’t take any strict action against these players even if they are found guilty of breaching the bubble. The newspaper reported that BCCI and Cricket Australia are currently investigating the issue. However irrespective of the results of the investigation, the players will be available for selection.
S Gill and R Pant played the previous Test and are certain to play in the next one while R Sharma has been appointed as the vice-captain which means he too would be a part of India’s playing XI. The investigation cast doubts over their availability but it seems BCCI will not prevent them from playing in the 3rd Test which will start from 07 January. On the other hand, Cricket Australia cannot take any action against Indian players as they are not contracted by CA.
It all started with a fan posting a video of these five players dining in a restaurant in Melbourne. The fan said in the post that he paid for the bill for these cricketers even though they were reluctant about it.
However, questions arose about the behavior of Indian players and the bio-secure bubble. The BCCI and CA took immediate action and after consulting the medical teams, the five players were isolated from the rest of the squad.
Although isolated, the five players are allowed to continue their training and have even traveled to Sydney with the rest of the team.