In an unexpected way, New Zealand’s tour of Australia has been postponed considering the quarantine restrictions. The trans-Tasman rivals were slated to play 3 One-Day Internationals (ODIs) on January 30th and February (2nd & 5th), as well as a one-off Twenty20 International (T20I) on 8th February. The postponement of these matches is mostly due to quarantine restrictions and border procedures in New Zealand. Here is why New Zealand’s Tour Of Australia Postponed.
It should be observed that white-ball matches involving Australia and New Zealand have been canceled for the 3rd year in a row owing to COVID-19 fears. This also implies that the Australian squad will be playing no ODIs this summer. This series was important because it was to be the New Zealand icon Ross Taylor’s last appearance in international colors. As a result, it’s unclear if he’ll play in New Zealand’s following 50-over matches.
NZC and CA had explored a proposal to push out the date: David White
In the backdrop of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, the New Zealand government has been implementing a strict 10-day strict quarantine for the uninitiated. As a result, New Zealand Cricket could hardly get commitments that the national team squad would be permitted to return to the country. Meantime, the 2 teams will face off in a 3-match T20 series in New Zealand between March (17th & 20th).
Furthermore, if the existing limits stay stable, it is unclear whether the series will continue. However, representatives from Cricket Australia and New Zealand have proposed playing those games on Australian soil.
NZC chief executive David White said: “As we now know, the advent of Omicron prompted a change of heart from the NZ Government, resulting in a hard 10-day mandatory isolation period being imposed on all incoming travelers. NZC and CA had explored a proposal to expand the tour and to push out the date on which the squad might return to New Zealand in the hope that might be more achievable for the Government”.
CA chief executive Nick Hockley said: “We are extremely disappointed that we won’t be able to play the scheduled matches against New Zealand as planned, however, we will continue to work with New Zealand Cricket to reschedule the series.”
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