Depleted India desperate to avoid further hiccup

A Covid-hit India Under-19 team will be taking on Uganda in their final league game at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy ground in Trinidad on Saturday (January 22). Having already won their previous two matches in this ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup, the 'Boys in Blue' have already sealed their place at the knock-out stage. Hence, technically this encounter is kind of a dead-rubber. Although they need the two points to top the group and secure a Quarter-final clash (possibly against defending champions Bangladesh) on January 29 in Antigua.

However, the concern in the Indian camp hovers around the virus outbreak inside their bio-bubble which has already infected five of their cricketers. With just 12 available boys left in for selection, the think-tank is taking a very cautious approach. So much so that they even cancelled their scheduled pre-match training session on Friday in order to minimise the exposure of the players with the outside world.

The five cricketers who tested positive, which includes the skipper Yash Dhull and vice-captain SK Rasheed, are still in isolation and there has been no change in their status till this article is being written. However, Vasu Vats tested negative for the virus and will most probably be available for this game. 

Nevertheless, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is sending reinforcements in order to provide the team with enough backup to counter any emergency situation during the knockouts. Five cricketers  – Abhishek Porel (a keeper-batsman), Uday Saharan (middle-order batter and an off-spinner), Rishith Reddy (medium-pacer), Ansh Gosai (middle-order batter) and PM Singh Rathore (medium-pacer) – have already started their journey for the Caribbean and they are expected to land in Port of Spain on Saturday (January 22) evening. 

However, all of them will need to be quarantined for six days before they are being allowed to join the squad. Though, ICC has already confirmed that officially India haven't asked for any replacement yet. So, these players will be stationed as reserves for now and they will only come into the scheme of things if primary players, who are already in isolation do not recover before the knockouts or if there are any more positive cases in the team.

Tremendous show of character and maturity from the U-19 team. With just 11 players available for today's game, to go out and express themselves the way they did was phenomenal. Can't say how proud I am of them! The Ireland match is one they will cherish for life👌 #U19CWC pic.twitter.com/zCmuM8cQWg

— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) January 20, 2022

Against Uganda, who are yet to win a game in the tournament, the rest of the Indian boys will be looking to get some crucial match-time under their belt. Especially eyes will be on the likes of Harnoor Singh, Angriksh Raghuvanshi, Rajvardhan Hangargekar  and others following their commendable exploits against Ireland, which was even lauded by the new National Cricket Academy (NCA) director VVS Laxman, who is travelling the team in the Caribbean.