After their return from Australia, the New Zealand men’s cricket team, including the support staff, has been kept under the self-isolation for a mandatory period of 14 days amid the coronavirus pandemic. New Zealand Cricket confirmed on Thursday that all the 15 players and support staff, who went to Australia for the series and returned from Sydney last weekend, were in isolation at home as per Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s directive, reports stuff.co.nz.
NZC public affairs manager Richard Boock said: “They (Black Caps players and touring staff) have all gone into self-isolation. We’ve passed on all the details about what self-isolation means and as far as we know they’re all following it strictly.”
The Kane Williamson-led New Zealand side had to return after the three-match Chappell Hadlee series was cancelled in the middle. The first ODI of the series was played at the Sydney Cricket Ground before an empty stadium where New Zealand faced a humiliating 71-run defeat.
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The virus has also pushed back of Australia’s tour of New Zealand that was to follow, where they were about to play three Twenty20 International games on March 24, 27 and 29 respectively. Like the New Zealand team, the South African team has also been put under lockdown phase after they returned from India after the cancellation of three-match One Day International series.
Coronavirus has affected not only everyone’s lives but also sporting events across the globe which included the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League where no decision took place during Monday’s teleconference by the eight IPL franchise owners as the situation has not changed much in the last few days amid the novel coronavirus pandemic in the country as well as globally.
Earlier the BCCI has postponed the start date of the tournament from March 29 to April 15 as India currently reported 114 positive cases and two deaths for COVID-19 so far. While all the foreign visas have already been put on hold till April 15, the BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has said that a “truncated IPL” can take place where a minimum 17 days already lost.
