Ashes Series: Sydney Test Not At Risk: NSW Health Minister

Web Desk — The New South Wales (NSW) health minister is hopeful that the Ashes Test in Sydney will begin as scheduled next week despite Covid 19 threatening to disrupt the series.

Two members of England’s support staff and their families tested positive for Coronavirus at the Melbourne Test on Monday and were placed in isolation.

After undergoing rapid antigen tests, the England team and management were allowed to proceed to the ground when the results were negative, despite being close contacts. Further PCR tests were negative for the Australian and English teams.

New South Wales, where Sydney is located and which is experiencing an outbreak of infections, has different rules.

Those considered close contacts in NSW must isolate for seven days.

That would mean the Test would have been abandoned if it had been in Sydney, which hosts the fourth Ashes Test from January 5.

Brad Hazzard, the NSW health minister, dispelled fears that the match could be disrupted by contact-tracing regulations.

“I want to reassure the cricketing public that, under our guidelines, players who have been exposed to a known case of Covid-19 are only required to test and isolate until a negative result is received,” he added.