Ashes 2021 | ECB likely to give go-ahead as Cricket Australia softens quarantine norms

The uncertainty around the fate of the Ashes series is appearing to die as the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is all set to give its go-ahead for the series after Cricket Australia’s concession of not putting players’ families under strict quarantine in the country, The Times reported.

England players are all likely to arrive in Australia in bunches as many all-format players will arrive directly from the UAE after playing in the T20 World Cup while other Test specialists including the skipper Joe Root will directly reach Brisbane from England.

Cricket Australia gave an online briefing to England players and said that they will not be forced to confine themselves in hotel rooms for the whole period of 14 days and instead they will be allowed to move freely around their hotel resort, the report added.

After the fresh proposal from Cricket Australia with relatively softened quarantine norms, England players led by Joe Root have committed to the tour and the ECB is all but ready to stamp the green light on the Ashes series. The Times also said in its report that England will have enough players to choose from the first-choice squad to have a ‘strong’ tour to compete with the hosts.

The final decision by the ECB is due today and it is all likely that a tour comprising of 30 players including from England Lions will be given a go-ahead and that the squad will be selected towards the end of the week.

Earlier, Australia’s Cricket body was refusing to offer a lenient period of isolation to players and their families that had put serious doubts over the future of one of the most iconic and traditional series in the game of cricket.