India vs England 5th Test: Virat Kohli and Co defy BCCI advice again, head out for dinner at restaurant, check PICS here

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had issued a strict warning to the Indian cricket team touring England ahead of rescheduled fifth Test at Edgbaston starting on July 1 to stay indoor. The advice from the BCCI had come in the aftermath of skipper Rohit Sharma testing COVID-19 last weekend and in doubt for the upcoming Test.

However, former captain Virat Kohli and other members of Team India like Rishabh, Shreyas, Gill, Shardul, Siraj, Saini and Kamlesh Nagarkoti decided to visit a restaurant in Birmingham. The guidelines from BCCI included not visiting public places, stay indoors unless absolutely needed and avoiding coming in contact with fans. This was done to avoid any further COVID-19 cases in Indian camp.

The cricketers mingled with fans, took selfies and were spotted in a Birmingham restaurant. Before that, despite advice, Rishabh Pant decided to sign autographs and click pictures with fans during Leicestershire warm-up match.

“It was very irresponsible for the team. They were informed of the risks and were advised not to roam around in public places without masks. But we see Rohit, Virat, Rishabh and almost everyone ignoring all the advice. It was bound to happen (Rohit testing positive),” a senior BCCI official told InsideSport website on Sunday.

Check pics of Team India members at restaurant in Birmingham here...

Virat Kohli, Rishabh, Shreyas, Gill, Shardul, Siraj, Saini and Kamlesh Nagarkoti visit to the restaurant in Birmingham. pic.twitter.com/l6fEBDe5UN — CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) June 28, 2022

Though England has lifted bio-bubble and isolation-related barriers, COVID-19 is still not over and players have failed to completely protect the side from the virus. A source from BCCI told ANI, “The board has scolded some players over their habit of hanging out in public. It also seems some players went in public and clicked pictures with fans, which could be dangerous. We had told them to stay careful but they still often roamed around in the city which is not required, so we asked them again to take precautions.”

It was seen that star batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were hanging out in public and pictures of them surfaced on the internet in which they were seen clicking pictures with their fans.

(with ANI inputs)