The Irish team is Set to fly Jamaica on Friday for three ODIs and a T20I against West Indies, starting on January 8, 2022. However, it is reported that three players in the team have been infected with the corona virus.
The three players, Paul Starlin, Shane Gatecate and George Dockrell, have been infected with the corona virus. Accordingly, Starlin and Gatecate will be subject to a mandatory ten-day quarantine period. But DocCorel was infected with the virus before his trip to the United States.
Ireland are set to face the West Indies in a four-match schedule, including an T20 international, starting on 8 January and concluding on 16 January.
However, George Dockrell is not subject to the quarantine period as there is a guarantee that he has recovered. Earlier, several members of the team’s support staff were infected with the virus and had to cancel their Two One-Day Internationals tour of the United States.
Cricket Ireland said in a statement that Balbirnie and McBrine are likely to join the squad in Jamaica on January 2, pending further negative tests, with Stirling and Getkate due to leave quarantine on January 9, the day after the first ODI against West Indies.
“It is a challenging time for all, but the players have responded very well to operating within the managed environment over the last two weeks,” Richard Holdsworth, High Performance Director for Cricket Ireland said.
“A managed environment is different to a bio-bubble, and is an approach being used currently to try and find that balance between risk mitigation from the virus and impacts of sustained periods of isolation on the mental and physical health needs of players and staff.
“Part of this new approach is the ability to have several partners travel with the squad, however, these additional people are required to abide by the same testing and travel protocols as the players.
“However, the transmissibility of this latest strain of the virus has not spared us – nor indeed the USA squad nor the umpires in our recent series – and overnight three players have now tested positive.”