Marnus Labuschagne forced into isolation after teammate tests positive to Covid-19

Frustrated Marnus Labuschagne was forced out of a T20 Blast match for Glamorgan and into isolation after a teammate tested positive.

Marnus Labuschagne is the leading run-scorer for Glamorgan in the T20 Blast

Marnus Labuschagne’s hopes of playing the T20 World Cup later this year took another blow this week with the batsman confined to his room because of a Covid scare and likely to miss at least the next four matches for his Glamorgan.

Geography and pandemics have been cited as the reason the brilliant Queensland cricketer was not among the 30 players who had been named in the preliminary or final squad for the West Indies tour which flew out of Australia on Sunday.

In England to continue County duties with the side for whom he starred in 2019, Labuschagne was told to stay put. Dan Christian and Ben McDermott were asked to fly back from the UK to plug gaps when seven players withdrew from the tour.

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Labuschagne was forced out of Sunday night’s T20 blast match for Glamorgan and into isolation with teammate Michael Neser after fellow Australian player Nick Selman tested positive to Covid.

His manager, Dean Kino, said on Monday morning the brilliant batsman believed he would have to spend 10 days in isolation.

Labuschagne and Neser share a house in Cardiff where they and Selman, also from Brisbane, play for the county side.

The batsman was ordered not to travel with the team after he and Neser were deemed close contacts.

Labuschagne, who was guest on a new episode of The Australian’s Cricket Et Cetera podcast, admitted it was frustrating to be left behind but was focused on using the T20 matches in England to fly the flag for a World Cup berth.

“It certainly does (bother me) but these are circumstances that are out of our control with quarantine and the way Covid is at the moment, it just makes it very hard,” he told Cricket Et Cetera.

“Usually it would be a simple game, I’m in England, I fly to the West Indies and that’s it, fly in two days before, but obviously that wasn’t possible with the current Covid situation and these are decisions that have been made, You have to look at the silver lining, for me it gives me an opportunity to develop a part of my game that I haven’t really had much time to work on.

“I have got 14 games over here that I am playing now that I am working on my game being able to develop all my skills with bat, ball and in the field and if it comes back from that tour and they see me as being a part of that 15-man squad to go to the World T20 that’s great and probably the way it is they have seen an array of players in that time to pick from.”

“Anyone who knows Marnus understands he would give absolutely anything to play for Australia and he is deeply upset to miss out due to circumstances beyond anyone’s control,” selector Trevor Hohns said when the squad was announced. “We worked through numerous options in conversations with Marnus to find a workable solution but ultimately came to the conclusion it was more practical for him to remain in the UK.”

Labuschagne is Glamorgan’s top scorer in the Blast while Neser has been in the match day squads but not made the final XI.

“The positive test came out at about half-past-seven this morning (Sunday) and as a precautionary measure we kept Marnus out from travelling with us today,” said coach Matthew Maynard.

“We’re not sure where Nick Selman picked up Covid, whether it was down in Brighton or in Cardiff, but he wasn’t feeling well, so he went for the tests and the results came through at 7.30.

“All the lads have had lateral flow tests twice a week, everyone was clear from that, so we believe it’s not in the team environment, it’s just an isolated incident and we have isolated the guys who were in potentially closer contact with him.”

Durham, Surrey, Nottingham and Middlesex have all had players miss games due to positive tests or track-and-trace requirements this season.

Labuschagne admitted it was frustrating that Australia would only play four Test matches in 18 months when opposition teams are playing so many.

“I’d be lying if I said we didn’t want to be playing, we definitely want to be playing Test cricket, watching England play 13 Test matches over here, it does (frustrate), but that’s out of our control as players,” he said.

“Our job is to be available and play when called on and at the moment there is no test cricket on but we need to make sure we are ready because I think there’s a big 18 months coming up, post the Ashes there’s a lot of cricket so we need to make sure we are ready for some big tours.”