Indian players, Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Shubman Gill, Navdeep Saini and Prithvi Shaw have been put in isolation as a precautionary measure.
The New Year's eve may have brought happiness to the Indian fan named Navaldeep Singh who had spotted the Indian cricketers at a restaurant in Melbourne and paid their bill, however, the incident was not in favour of the players who apparently breached the bio-bubble.
Indian players, Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Shubman Gill, Navdeep Saini and Prithvi Shaw were at a restaurant in Melbourne when the fan spotted them and paid their bill.
He narrated the whole incident on his Twitter handle and in his tweets, he mentioned that Pant hugged him as well and the story went viral on social media.
According to Cricket Australia’s (CA) bio-security protocols, the players and staff were allowed to eat out but had to sit outdoors.
However, the staff of the restaurant confirmed that the players dined inside and with Pant hugging the fan has now created even more concerns as the cricketers, in the bubble, are not supposed to interact with fans.
However, with the issue up, Navaldeep Singh, come up with a clarification and stated that Pant never hugged him. He said he wrote that in his earlier tweet only out of excitement and added that social distancing was maintained throughout.
"Clarification – Pant never hugged me it was all said in excitement we maintained social distance all thru:) Apologies for miscommunication @BCCI @CricketAus @dailytelegraph," his tweet read.
Cricket Australia (CA) confirmed on Saturday that the five Indian players have been put in isolation as a precautionary measure.
The CA in a release said: "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 travelling and at the training venue.
"The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Cricket Australia (CA) were alerted to a video post on social media that purported to show Rohit, Pant, Gill, Shaw, and Saini eating at an indoor venue in Melbourne on New Year's Day".
About BCCI's investigation:
After being made aware of the fan interaction, the BCCI started investigating the matter. The players might have breached the bio-bubble due to COVID-19 and it remains to be seen what happens next.
Previous bio-bubble breaches have seen players either being dropped from the next game or quarantining and testing again before entering in the bubble again.
As for the third Test between Australia and India, it is set to be played from January 7 in Sydney.
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