Rishabh Pant tests positive for COVID-19 ahead of India vs England Tests 

Rishabh Pant has tested positive for COVID-19 in the UK ahead of the five-match Test series between India and England.

Pant is "asymptomatic" and has been in isolation for the past eight days, a Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) source told news agency PTI. The wicketkeeper-batsman will not travel to Durham, where the Indian cricket team and the support staff are expected to assemble on Thursday (July 15) for the preparations ahead of the first Test against England.

"He is in quarantine at an acquaintance's place and won't be travelling with the team to Durham on Thursday," said the unnamed BCCI source, who did not mention Pant's possible return date.

It was earlier reported that apart from the player who was still in isolation, another Indian player had tested positive but had recovered. While it is now known that the player in isolation is Pant, the name of the second player is still not known.

It is understood that Pant has been infected by the Delta variant that has led to the rising number of cases in the UK. The 23-year-old player was spotted at a European Championship game last month. He had even posted pictures from the evening on his social media accounts.

The news has come after the BCCI secretary Jay Shah recently sending an email to the Indian contingent in the UK warning them against the spike in COVID-19 cases in the country, according to PTI.

In the email, Shah had told the players to "avoid" crowded places as Covishield only provides protection, not full immunity against the virus. He had specifically asked the players to avoid going to Wimbledon and Euros 2020, which recently concluded in the UK.

However, the players and support staff did not abide by that as a few players and support staff, including head coach Ravi Shastri, were spotted at the sporting events. Pant and Jasprit Bumrah went for a Euros 2020 game each, while Shastri and Ravichandran Ashwin went to Wimbledon.

The Indian team has been on a break since losing the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC) against New Zealand last month in Southampton. The five-match Test series between India and England is scheduled to begin on August 4 at Trent Bridge, Nottingham. The remaining Tests will be played at Lord's, London, Headingley, Leeds, Kennington Oval, London, and Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester.

Ahead of Test series, which is India's first assignment of the 2021-23 World Test Championship (WTC) Cycle. the Indian team is set to play a warm-up game from July 20 to 22 against a County Championship XI team that is being arranged by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after a request from the BCCI.

The decision regarding the warm-up game was taken following India's loss in the WTC final. Following the loss, India captain Kohli had said his side wanted first-class games ahead of the series against England, but they had not been given that.