Australia pacer Kane Richardson has been tested for Coronavirus just ahead of the opening ODI against New Zealand. Richardson, who was a part of the trip to South Africa, complaint of a mild sore throat last night and underwent the test earlier today. As for now, Australia have withdrawn him from the squad and are awaiting the results of the test.
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The selectors called up Sean Abbott as Richardson’s replacement. Since his comeback, Abbott has only been part of the T20I squad. His only ODI appearance came back in 2014.
Richardson is now unlikely to feature in the series as Australia wait for the results of the test. It will also determine whether he will be part of the upcoming season of Indian Premier League.
As for now, he has been Quarantined and didn’t travel to the Sydney Cricket Ground. Cricket Australia is staging the opening ODI behind closed doors due to the coronavirus threat. There will be no crowd in second and third ODI as well.
New Zealand Cricket Board hasn’t taken a call on it yet. – the three T20Is of the series are scheduled to be played there.
Following the series, many Australian and New Zealand players are slated to fly to India for IPL. The T20 league is on the track but a final decision on it will be taken on Saturday. The matches are likely to be played with no crowd in the stands.
Meanwhile, Australia’s David Warner is in danger of missing the league as his visa application has been rejected by India. There is no official word on why his application was rejected. A clear picture on the matter is expected to come out once the player, franchise and BCCI comment on the matter.
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It is to be noted that India has cancelled visas until April 15. Warner might have applied for it after the decision by the Indian government, hence his visa application got rejected. The upcoming season of IPL is scheduled to kick off on March 29.