New Zealand visit to Australia put on hold due to border controls

T20 cricket
Finch

The New Zealand tour to Australia, originally scheduled to take place between 24 January and 9 February, has been postponed.

The Black Caps have opted against touring as a result of their own country’s border controls and quarantine requirements.

It had been proposed by New Zealand Cricket (NZC) and Cricket Australia (CA) that the length of the tour be extended so that the Kiwi players could return home at a time more manageable for the managed isolation and quarantine process, but the New Zealand Government confirmed today it had no capacity to meet the request.

The discussions for when the postponed fixtures will be played are ongoing between CA and NZC.

Nick Hockley, CA CEO, 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.

“We thank NZC, who made every effort to make the series happen, however because they were unable to get certainty over return quarantine arrangements, it is simply just not possible at this time.

“We know fans will be disappointed and thank them for their understanding given the unique circumstances that the global pandemic presents for everyone.

“We look forward to welcoming Sri Lanka to Australia next month and will confirm the schedule for that series as soon as possible.”

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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 travellers.

“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 it might be more achievable for the Government. Unfortunately, we received advice this morning that they could not provide certainty over this.”

CA are expected to confirm the schedule for their upcoming T20 Internationals against Sri Lanka in the coming days.

Kane Williamson Nick Hockley

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