Team India is in a major quandary with both their specialist wicketkeepers ruled out heading into their practice game against Combined Counties XI next week. Rishabh Pant was diagnosed with COVID-19 on July 8 and has been in isolation since then, while Wriddhiman Saha also needs to be isolated in London as he was close contact of Team India support staff Dayanand Garani.


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While KL Rahul looks likely to take over the wicketkeeping duties for that match, Dinesh Karthik – who is in the UK for a commentary stint – sarcastically hinted that he could chip in. The former Kolkata Knight Riders captain posted a picture of his cricket kit to his Twitter account with a caption had a hashtag that read ‘just saying’.



The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed through a statement that Pant has been in isolation for the past eight days. He is asymptomatic at this point. “Pant, who had not stayed in the team hotel during the break period, tested positive on 8th July. He is asymptomatic and currently undergoing self-isolation at the place where he reported positive. He is being closely monitored by the BCCI Medical Team and is on his way to recovery. He will be able to join the squad in Durham after returning two negative RT-PCR tests,” a BCCI statement read.


Meanwhile, Karthik – who is a key member of the KKR franchise – would rejoin the team for the remainder of the IPL 2021 season. The Kolkata-based struggled in the first half of the IPL 2021 as they managed to win only two out of their seven games. A good performance from Karthik would help the team get back to winning ways.


Karthik – who is a part of the broadcast team in the UK – has become quite a popular figure among fans. During the WTC Final, Karthik was the one who provided a weather update from Southampton on a regular basis.