Australia v India Test series: Cricket Australia call on Mitchell Starc was the save of the summer

Well done, Cricket Australia! If not for the diligence of their COVID bubble protocols, the Aussies faced the prospect of playing in Adelaide a fast bowler down.

Starc rocked India with the pink ball over the first two days in Adelaide. Picture: AFP

It’s no fun being a bubble boy, but the strict bio-security measures driving sportsmen mad saved Australia from having Mitchell Starc sensationally pulled out of the first Test.

Starc lives on Sydney’s northern beaches, but while media identities from the same area were flying home on Friday or being forced into isolation, he was still taking Indian wickets on day two of the Test because of an 11th hour exemption from the South Australian Government.

Cricket Australia deserve some much overdue credit for the diligence of their bubble protocols, and the fact they didn’t have to stress about Starc’s ongoing presence in Adelaide despite the potential for it to be a disaster – should shut up any critics who still think Chris Lynn’s $10,000 fine was over the top.

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Mitchell Starc might not have been celebrating in Adelaide had it not been for CA’s foresight.

The South Australian Government on Friday ordered anyone who had been to the northern beaches since last Friday to immediately enter 14 days of quarantine.

Starc and wife Alyssa Healy only arrived in Adelaide on Sunday due to the fast bowler taking leave from the Australian camp due to a family illness.

But even though the couple were still on the northern beaches on December 11, Starc and Healy were granted an exemption from the South Australian Government on Friday morning.

The exemption came on the strength of CA’s leave-no-stone-unturned protocols which demanded they take steps to self-isolate for three days before rejoining the bubble.

Had they not isolated, Starc would not have got the green tick from the SA Government on Friday morning and could have been forced into compulsory 14 days quarantine and replaced in the match by a like-for-like James Pattinson as per ICC COVID regulations.

Imagine the bombshell if Starc had to be yanked out of a Test after just one day?

Perhaps Starc might have been OK anyway if he hadn’t been to the specific hot spots identified. But the moral of the story is Cricket Australia’s protocols work and they are still very much necessary despite the zero community transmission statistics in other parts of the country.

Starc rocked India with the pink ball over the first two days in Adelaide. Picture: AFP

CA slapped the Brisbane Heat with a $50,000 sanction for the actions of Lynn and Englishman Dan Lawrence in flagrantly breaching bubble protocols in Canberra during the Big Bash League earlier this week.

There have been other reports of private discontent among other BBL players and officials that protocols are too tight.

But the latest northern beaches outbreak should stop the whinging as it shone a light on the wisdom behind CA’s decision to clamp down with measures that are safe and meticulous, but not oppressive.

“This is the very reason why throughout the summer we’ve had the players in bubbles and in hubs, and we’ve had a hugely successful summer already,” said Cricket Australia interim CEO Nick Hockley on SEN.

“As we’ve worked almost zero community transmission, there have been a lot of calls saying, ‘do we need the hubs?’

Cricket Australia interim CEO Nick Hockley. Picture: Getty

“For us of late over recent weeks, it’s been not about protecting against coronavirus as much as not getting tangled up in this web of people having to go into isolation (when borders close and restrictions tighten).

“And I have to say whether it’s WWBL, BBL players, BCCI, our own Australia squads they’ve just been absolutely fantastic in adhering to all the protocols.”

The cricket might have carried on Friday, but Cricket Australia’s protocols saved the Test team from going a fast bowler down.

It could be the save of the summer.

ROBERTSON’S REGRET: BEAT BRAIN CANCER, FOILED BY COVID

Former Australian spinner Gavin Robertson beat a brain tumour to fight his way back to the commentary box – only to be on a plane home after one day.

Robertson, Test wicketkeeper Brad Haddin and experienced broadcaster Matt White are part of the SEN radio commentary team who returned to Sydney after the Northern Beaches COVID outbreak.

They will call the match out of SEN’s Sydney studios.

Former Test cricketer Gavin Robertson has had to fly home from the Adelaide Test due to COVID restrictions. Source: Twitter

Robertson had a brain tumour the size of a golf ball removed after requiring urgent surgery when the bad news came through in May, 2019.

“I am really gutted,’’ Robertson said. “We were here loving the game we know with a bunch of mates. I have seen mates I have known for the last 25 years.

“I was really looking forward to catching up with people. It disappointing but you have to do the right thing.’’

Robertson, who is looking forward to getting back behind the mic in Sydney, had missed two years’ commentary and returned to the box in Adelaide on Thursday with some insightful analysis of Test spinner Nathan Lyon only a former Test tweaker could provide.

Gavin Robertson (R) had a tumour removed by renowned surgeon Charlie Teo. Picture. Phil Hillyard

Just being around the cricket scene in Adelaide was a joy for Robertson who well remembers that day his phone rang in Melbourne and it was Dr Charlie Teo, one of Australia’s leading brain surgeons.

The message was “get the next plane home’’ and Robertson underwent surgery soon after. Robertson says the experience taught him “tomorrow was never guaranteed’’ and that there was no point worrying about the “incidental’’ things in life.

White, who lives at Manly, had mixed emotions.

“I called my first day of Test cricket yesterday so I am gutted and buzzing at the same time,’’ White said.

White said the incident reminded him of a similar outbreak in the Australian Grand Prix this year, an event cancelled after an escalating series of concerns.

“The lessons learnt from the Formula One experience for me was that when there are a lot of moving parts you just cannot predict what is going to happen, not just today but the next 24 hours,’’ White said.

“There is a chance we would be right to stay but there is also a chance we would be stuck. I live in the Northern Beaches but are at the other end to where the hotspots are.’’