Australian game scrapped after just four local Covid cases ahead of Ashes

The Ashes remains under threat after a Sheffield Shield match was postponed due to just four new local cases of Covid 19.

Such is the fear surrounding the virus Down Under, Tasmania were not prepared to fulfil their four day fixture with Queensland, preferring to head back to Hobart just half an hour before the start of play.

The move provides a real insight into the mindset in some states when it comes to Covid and with the ECB and Cricket Australia still thrashing out the terms of the conditions for the Ashes, there is growing concern at what Joe Root’s England team will face when they are in Australia.

Further actions such as this in the opening skirmishes of Australian domestic cricket could encourage tighter bubble conditions for the England team which could cause players to withdraw.

It also appears clear that there will be no Ashes cricket in Perth this winter due to the strict 14 day quarantine regulations being enforced by the West Australian government.

The Perth Test is due to be the fifth of the series in January, but with the players having already quarantined to get into Australia, the idea of another 14 days just to reach Perth will be rejected leaving them without a match.

Federal Minister for Sport Richard Colbeck said: "The cricketers won’t quarantine, they won’t come. We’ve had to do a lot of work to organise quarantine arrangements for the cricketers coming to Australia.

"We want the Ashes tour to go ahead. But I’d say there’s serious questions about whether or not there would be a Test match in Perth this summer.

Having had the Tests in Sydney and Melbourne, there won’t be the time frames for quarantine to occur before coming to Western Australia. I would suggest that the possibility of a Test match in Western Australia is very slim."

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