Australia has been one of the countries that has handled the outbreak of coronavirus the best across the world. They’ve shut borders when they’ve deemed fit, stopped international travel, and have successfully controlled cases well enough over the months. However, there has been a recent outbreak of Covid-19 cases in the ongoing Big Bash League (BBL) T20 tournament in the country.
When the Pakistan Super League took place earlier this year, the tournament had to be cancelled halfway and resumed a few months later in the UAE. The same fate followed for the Indian Premier League as well, with half the tournament resuming in UAE. As for BBL 2021/22, it was unharmed by Covid cases until members of the Melbourne Stars and Sydney Thunder turned positive cases yesterday.
BBL 11 hit by Covid-19 cases
The match on 30th Dec 2021 was the first game (Scorchers vs Stars) of the BBL 11 season to be cancelled due to Covid-19 concerns but it wasn’t revealed which players or members of management tested positive. But today, we know that it’s because 4 members from the Thunder and up to 8 members from the Stars squad tested positive and are now currently isolating themselves.
Now, there are two ways of going forward. One, Cricket Australia decides to resume the tournament and with doing so, these two squads will have to look into their reserves to put up a playing eleven. However, that means that they’re risking other players who were in contact to become spreaders. Secondly, there’s a chance that the Stars and Thunder fixtures may be postponed to future dates.
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As of now, today’s (31st Dec) fixture between the Strikers and the Thunder is in doubt and the management is working together to try and find a fix for the nearest BBL 11 fixtures. The Stars’ next match is at St Kilda against the Scorchers on 2nd Jan 2022 but the immediate concern is today’s game and a decision will be take soon. Sydney Thunder is seeking advice from SA Health on how to go ahead.
Will BBL 2021/22 be cancelled?
As of now, a decision is awaited on the New Year’s Eve clash between Strikers and Stars. Based on this decision, we’ll get an idea on what will be done. If today’s game is also cancelled, we can expect further cancellations to happen as well, as other teams also have a few cases, with as many as 19 cases reported in the BBL right now. So to answer the question, we’ll just have to wait and see.
Elsewhere in Australia too, there have been cases of Covid-19. Travis Head who scored a century in the 1st Test of Ashes 2021/22, has been ruled out of the fourth Test after testing positive. Similarly, England coach Chris Silverwood is also in isolation after testing positive and these are worrying signs for the country of Australia as a whole.
For similar updates on the 2021/22 Big Bash League, stay tuned to ReadScoops.com…
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