How Adam Zampa beat Scott Morrison’s border restrictions
Aussie cricketer Adam Zampa has explained how he beat Scott Morrison’s travel block from India.
Zampa and fellow Aussie cricketer Kane Richardson landed safely back in Australia last week after fleeing COVID-19-ravaged India through a loophole in the border restrictions to India.
The two cricketers, who had been playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore in India’s rich Indian Premier League, made their journey home to Melbourne after travelling from Mumbai to Doha, despite flights to and from India into Australia being suspended.
The Prime Minister had vowed to stop travel loopholes after slamming the border shut.
The divisive policy has caused a storm this week with Aussie cricket great Michael Slater unloading on the Prime Minister following the Australian government’s decision to block citizens from returning home from India until at least May 15.
Having served as a commentator for the Indian Premier League, Slater escaped from India earlier this week as the country’s coronavirus situation worsened.
Slater is reported to have travelled to the Maldives where he will wait until he can legally return home.
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Cricketer Adam Zampa with his fiancee Harriet Palmer. Picture: Supplied.Source:Supplied
Zampa explained on Tuesday how he also snuck under Morrison’s nose.
“Kane and I have obviously been in the news a lot about how we got home on that Doha flight,” he told SEN.
“As soon as we made the decision to leave, we told Simon Katich, who is the RCB coach, and he was fully supportive of it. And then we just spoke to the RCB management about getting us home.
“They booked through an affiliated travel agent and we got given the itinerary. I got it on my Qantas app. So we just followed the itinerary and that’s basically it.
“That’s as in-depth as it goes.”
Zampa said he didn’t have to quarantine in Doha before getting on the flight to Australia, where he is now completing his 14 days in hotel quarantine.
There were nearly 400,000 new cases registered across India on Sunday in the world’s fastest-growing outbreak.
Adam Zampa exposed a potential flaw of the India border shutdown.Source:Getty Images
Adam Zampa playing against India.Source:AFP
On Saturday, Morrison’s government introduced fines of up to $66,600 or five years in prison for anyone defying the travel ban preventing Australians returning home from India. The temporary measure is designed to allow for hotel quarantine upgrades in Australia before an influx of citizens fleeing COVID-ravaged India.
There are currently more than 30 Australian players, commentators, umpires and coaching staff participating in the glamorous T20 tournament — including Steve Smith, Pat Cummins, David Warner and Ricky Ponting.
Last week, Morrison said Australian cricket talent in India would not be given any preferential treatment.
Morrison clarified in last week’s announcement that the Government was advised gateway destinations, including Doha, Dubai, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, had also suspended all travel to and from India, making the India lockdown near watertight.
“So that third country entry point into Australia has already been closed by those key embarkation points to Australia,” he said.
Zampa and Richardson were among the last travellers to use the Doha loophole.
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