Rohit Sharma
Five Indian players - Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Shubman Gill, Prithvi Shaw and Navdeep Saini - have been placed into isolation for potential breach of COVID-19 protocols after a video went viral on social media where they were spotted having food at a restaurant in Melbourne.
The players have been separated from the Indian and the Australian squad who are both in Melbourne "in accordance with the strict protocols that have been put in place to ensure the ongoing safety of all members of the Indian and Australian squads," said a Cricket Australia statement on Saturday night.
"The BCCI and CA are investigating the matter and seeking to determine whether the outing constitutes a breach of biosecurity protocols.
"In the interim, on the advice of the Australian and Indian medical teams, the aforementioned players have been placed in isolation as a precaution. This will include separating the group of players from the broader Indian and Australian squads when traveling and at the training venue."
A video of the five players sitting at a restaurant on New Year's Day went viral after a cricket fan shared it on his Twitter page, who even claimed to have paid their bill. He further added that he hugged Pant before clarifying on the following day that he didn't.
The protocols are expected to get stricter in Sydney where they will be travelling on Monday. These protocols of Cricket Australia, who are yet to receive a green signal from Queensland's government for the travel of players from Sydney to Brisbane for the fourth Test, have helped them in tackling a second outbreak in the country.
BCCI too will be looking into the matter and decide the sanctions for this breach.
The third Test begins on January 7 with the series levelled at 1-1.
