Australia and India players faced with QLD quarantine should Sydney Test go ahead

The Queensland government could play a major role in saving the Sydney Test - but the move would have catastrophic implications for the Big Bash.

The SCG Test is one of the centrepieces of the Australian summer. Picture: AAP

Australia and India players would be ordered into hotel quarantine in Queensland if the series progresses to the Gabba via Sydney.

Captains Tim Paine and Ajinkya Rahane and their squads would only be allowed to leave their hotels for training session and to play the fourth Test match.

The heavy restrictions would almost certainly rule Australia’s Test superstars out of the Big Bash League after the Test series concludes.

Watch Australia v India Test Series Live & Ad-Break Free During Play with the Fox Cricket commentary team. New to Kayo? Get your free trial now & start streaming instantly >

Queensland has declared Greater Sydney a coronavirus hotspot and will enforce heavy provisions on the travelling parties if they enter the Sunshine State from New South Wales.

But the fact Queensland Health will let the teams into their state has kept Sydney’s hopes of hosting the SCG Test alive.

Broadcasters are also confident they could deliver the series from the SCG and the Gabba, despite the multiple logistical barriers in the way.

The SCG Test is one of the centrepieces of the Australian summer. Picture: AAP

Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley has been locked in talks with government officials from NSW and Queensland today as a decision looms.

The MCG is on standby to host the January 7 Test match if CA decides that pushing ahead with the SCG Test is simply too hard.

Big Bash League big winner if Sydney Test moved

Sydney has staged a spirited 11th hour rally to save its SCG Test as New South Wales’ COVID-19 numbers continue to stay low.

The NSW Government is desperate to retain the SCG Test and would cap capacity at 50 per cent to help ensure it is a COVID-19 safe.

But NSW and CA are aware that the fate of the Test ultimately hinges on the Queensland government and its willingness to let the Border-Gavaskar series roll into Brisbane on January 12 from Sydney.

Tim Paine could be a big loss to the Hobart Hurricanes if the Sydney Test goes ahead.

NSW recorded just six new cases of coronavirus on Tuesday – all linked to the Avalon cluster – as talks between Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley and the NSW and Queensland governments and the MCC hit fever pitch.

Hockley has barely put his phone down this week in a desperate bid to save the SCG Test, which appeared lost on Monday.

But on Monday night plans to put TV broadcast staff in the biosecurity bubble advanced as Cricket Australia refused to give up hope that the Queensland government would allow the series to roll into Brisbane from Sydney, despite its border closure.

If Travis Head flies into Brisbane after spending time in Sydney he could be required to serve a period of quarantine, jeopardising his involvement in the BBL.

While the prevailing view is that the Sydney Test will ultimately be placed in the too hard basket, it still has a pulse.

Saving the iconic match would not only be a major coup for NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian for swiftly containing the Northern Beaches’ COVID-19 outbreak, but also for Hockley’s team for pulling out all stops to preserve the integrity of the season.

In the backdrop to the renewed Sydney hope, the MCG is pushing on with plans to prepare its ground for back-to-back Test matches as CA’s preferred contingency plan.

Curator Matthew Page is watering the centre wicket and preparing the pitch directly next to the Boxing Day strip for a possible January 7 Test.

The MCC has not been told which way the third Test will land and was due to meet with Hockley at lunchtime on Tuesday.

Broadcasters are eagerly awaiting a decision because they want to know whether to pack up their equipment at the end of the Boxing Day Test or leave it plugged in for back-to-back MCG games.

The Test is likely to finish on Tuesday with India looking to clean up Australia’s tail and ice a small run chase.

TEST STARS WITH BBL DEALS

Travis Head (Adelaide Strikers)

Michael Neser (Adelaide Strikers)

Joe Burns (Brisbane Heat)

Marnus Labuschagne (Brisbane Heat)

Mitchell Swepson (Brisbane Heat)

Matthew Wade (Hobart Hurricanes)

Tim Paine (Hobart Hurricanes)

Cameron Green (Perth Scorchers)

James Pattinson (Melbourne Renegades)

Marcus Harris (Melbourne Renegades)

Will Pucovski (Melbourne Stars)

Mitchell Starc (Sydney Sixers)

Nathan Lyon (Sydney Sixers)

Moises Henriques (Sydney Sixers)

NO BBL CONTRACT

Pat Cummins

Josh Hazlewood

Steve Smith

David Warner

NSW’S LAST-DITCH PLOY TO SAVE SCG TEST

Earlier in the week, NSW officials were holding out hope of 50 per cent crowds at the SCG should the Sydney Test be sensationally saved.

Cricket and Government powerbrokers are fighting tooth and nail to hold on to the city’s iconic New Year’s Test with the belief that tens of thousands of fans will still be allowed to attend despite the current COVID outbreak on the Northern Beaches.

It comes as MCG officials talked bullishly about being able to increase its 30,000 limit for the Boxing Day Test should Melbourne take custody of Sydney’s third Test starting on January 7.

The SCG Test is one of the centrepieces of the Australian summer. Picture: AAP

NSW Health has recorded daily live case numbers of 8, 8, 9, 7, 9 since last Tuesday, and the flat lining of numbers isn’t necessarily helping to expedite the process of making a call on whether the SCG can hold on to its Test, with Cricket Australia putting down a deadline of Wednesday for a final decision.

If numbers spiked then the decision to move the Test to Melbourne would be made for them, just as if they halved in number, it might make the critical border crossing discussions with the Queensland Government – about how to get from Sydney to Brisbane to finish the series – a little easier.

However, the fact NSW Health does appear to have a steady grip on the situation at least makes officials confident that if the Test is saved, it will be well worth it for a crowd of up to 19,000 a day to be able to attend.

Crowds will be limited in numbers in a last-ditch bid to save the SCG Test. Picture: AAP

Sources say even higher crowd numbers could be possible at the SCG depending on how the city manages to navigate through the challenge of New Year’s Eve celebrations in the midst of a pandemic – although the opposite could be true if there was evidence the virus has spread.

Northern Beaches residents would be banned from attending the Test unless the current lockout ended.

The A-League are pushing to have 50 per cent capacity for a Western Sydney Wanderers derby clash against Macarthur FC at Bankwest Stadium on December 30, in a huge plus for Sydney’s cricket hopes.

“That’s something we’re discussing actively now with the NSW Government,” said CA interim chief executive, Nick Hockley.

“We’re watching and learning from what other sports are doing.

“… Currently the advice and guidance we’re getting is that we will be able to have a crowd.

“Something extraordinary would have to happen in the next few days to change that. The fact case numbers have come down and are relatively low is what gives us confidence that we will be able to play in Sydney with crowds.”

Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley. Picture: AAP

The positive crowd estimations are a massive boost for Sydney’s hopes, because the lengths CA are going to in negotiations with the Queensland Government would seem a waste if the SCG was bracing for a locked out stadium.

The SCG had a 50 per cent capacity for three of the four limited overs internationals it held at the start of the summer, and the atmosphere was still lively with crowds in excess of 17,000.

NSW officials are privately praising the job being done by CA’s interim chief Hockley and Chairman Earl Eddings to pull off the great Sydney save.

CA powerbrokers will hold an important meeting on Sunday to update on how ongoing talks with the Queensland Government are progressing.

Cricket bosses need to ascertain over the next 24-48 hours exactly what Annastacia Palaszczuk’s Government would require a ‘broadcast bubble’ to look like to satisfy them that 100s of TV staffers should be allowed to cross the NSW-Queensland border to finish the series.

CA has committed to Brisbane being the fourth Test, so for Sydney to work, administrators need to be guaranteed that not only the teams, but critical broadcast staff could receive exemptions.

The Queensland Government has suggested the idea of a broadcast bubble, but details are needed on what the guidelines would be and whether or not the TV staffers would be locked down as tightly as the Australian and Indian teams.

ENDS

Originally published as Australia and India players faced with QLD quarantine should Sydney Test go ahead