The suspense continues over the availability of Rohit Sharma for the fifth and final Test against England set to begin here on Friday. There were speculative reports in the Indian media back home that Rohit failed to recover in time from the Covid infection he had contracted at Leicester while playing the warm-up game there and that Jasprit Bumrah had been penciled to lead the team in his absence.

However, talking to media at a virtual press conference, head coach Rahul Dravid said that there were still 36 hours before the start of the Test and that Rohit would be tested “tonight and tomorrow” before the selectors take a final call. “Rohit is being monitored continuously and has not yet been ruled out. The management will take a call on him on the morrow,” he said, refusing to give further details and requesting the media to await an official announcement by the chief selector the next day.