Dan Lawrence told to keep his distance in Big Bash after possible Covid breach

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England batsman Dan Lawrence will have to keep his distance from his team-mates during Monday’s Big Bash League clash between Brisbane Heat and Sydney Thunder after a possible breach of Covid-19 protocols.

Dan Lawrence suspected of breaking protocol

Cricket Australia is investigating Lawrence and Heat captain Chris Lynn after they were reported to have posed for a selfie with a member of the public.

That is against CA’s bubble rules, which require players to adhere to certain restrictions regarding their interaction with people outside their team environment.

Lawrence, who has been named in England’s Test squad for the series against Sri Lanka next month, and Lynn will have to use a different changing room and cannot celebrate wickets with their team-mates.

Minimising danger going forward

CA’s head of security Sean Carroll said on cricket.com.au: “It is important we maintain the integrity of the bio-secure hub to ensure the safety of the public, players, staff and officials and minimise issues associated with travel between state borders during the tournament.

“While we are fortunate to live in a country with a low rate of infection compared with many other parts of the world, we are still in the midst of a global pandemic and, as we’ve seen on a number of occasions in Australia, Covid-19 breakouts and border closures remain a genuine risk.

“We appreciate that this has been a challenging year for everyone but we must insist on our bio-security measures being respected and followed so as not to jeopardise public health and safety or the viability of the tournament.”

Brisbane lost their opening match to Melbourne Stars on Friday by eight wickets.

Australia Big Bash Dan Lawrence England

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