Mitchell Starc says he and Nathan Lyon may have also missed the second Ashes Test if they had not snubbed Pat Cummins at an Adelaide restaurant.
Australia captain Cummins was force to sit out the match at Adelaide Oval after the paceman was deemed to be a close contact with a positive coronavirus case at a restaurant.
Fellow fast bowler Starc and spinner Lyon dined at the same establishment, but were considered to be casual contacts with the person who had the virus.
Starc took 4-37 and Lyon claimed 3-58 as England meekly collapsed from 150-2 to 236 on day three in reply to 473-9 declared. Australia then closed in complete command on 45-1 in their second innings - leading by 282 runs.
Left-arm quick Starc revealed it could have been a very different story if Cummins had replied to his text message.
He said: "It was just fortunate we were sitting outside. It was almost a bit of a p***-take because Pat didn't reply to my message so thought we'd sit away from him and sit outside so it's been a lucky one."
Starc says he did not lose any sleep fretting over whether dining out could have cost him another chance to exploit England's vulnerable batting line-up in a match Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of due to a side strain.
"Spinner [Lyon] didn't sleep. I slept quite fine, there wasn't much I could do about it after," he said.
It was revealed on Saturday that both sides will face stricter protocols for the Melbourne and Sydney Tests due to a rise in COVID-19 cases.
Players can only follow Starc and Lyon's lead and dine outside, while they must also socially distance with members of the public.
Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley told SEN radio: "We need to make sure there's social distancing, so we ask everyone to be respectful in the public.
"That's the real shame because what we have seen is players wanting to interact with fans. That's been a feature of the Big Bash. But we've now got very clear protocols.
"As it comes to those on the field of play we need to make sure that people are operating in a really biosecure way."
Windies Academy in complete control of second four-day match against Emerging Ireland
In what seems to be a dominant display, the West Indies Academy is on track for a second consecutive victory against Emerging Ireland in the four-day match at Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua. Following the action on the second day, the West Indies Academy appears poised for success, holding a substantial lead over their opponents.
The West Indies Academy resumed their innings on Saturday from an overnight score of 300-8, eventually concluding at 326 all out. The momentum continued as their bowlers took center stage, dismantling Emerging Ireland for a mere 72 runs in 26.4 overs. Opting not to enforce the follow-on, the West Indies were 172-4 at stumps, establishing an overall lead of 426 runs heading into the third day.
Emerging Ireland faced a daunting challenge after bowling out the West Indies Academy for a competitive 326. With little resistance, only two batters managed to reach double figures. Cabe Carmichael emerged as the top scorer with 39, while Tom Hayes contributed 12. The home team's bowlers, led by Joshua Bishop with 4-18 from 6.4 overs, made swift work of the tourists' lineup. Isai Thorne displayed equal prowess with 3-15 from seven overs, and Nyeem Young, following his impressive 80 with the bat, claimed 2-7 from six overs. McKenny Clarke also made his presence felt with 1-16 from four overs.
With a commanding lead of 254 runs, the West Indies Academy continued their dominance with a solid batting performance, reaching 172-4 off 45 overs. Akeem Auguste played a significant role with a score of 75 and Teddy Bishop, 45, led the scoring for the West Indies Academy. As they aim for an all-out victory, the team is in a formidable position heading into Monday's play.
Tom Hayes stood out as the best of the Irish bowlers, claiming 2-23 from the 12 overs he bowled on Sunday. Barring a miraculous turnaround, the West Indies Academy appears well-poised to secure another convincing win in the ongoing four-day contest.
England captaincy honour ‘out of the blue’ to face South Africa – Fran Williams
Fran Williams admitted being asked to be captain of the England team for their upcoming series against South Africa came “a bit out of the blue” as preparations continued for the opening game on Tuesday.
The Loughborough Lightning player will lead the Vitality Roses in their tri-series against the SPAR Proteas, which begins on December 5 in Manchester followed by two games on December 9 and 10 in Nottingham.
Working in a wider leadership group alongside Eleanor Cardwell and Imogen Allison, Williams will lead the team for the first time and revealed that while receiving the captaincy was unexpected, she was looking forward to the opportunity.
“(It was) a bit out of the blue, I was having a catch-up meeting with Jess (Thirlby) our head coach about something completely separate and not relevant to leadership roles and captaincy,” Williams told the PA news agency.
“Then at the end of the meeting she asked if I’d want to be captain, if I’d take on that honour and I said ‘I don’t have to think about it, I’d love to do that opportunity’.
“Then I walked away and thought ‘gosh that’s actually a big deal, maybe I should have thought about this a bit more!’.
“There’s nothing better than being able to represent the team and it’s just such an easy role to take on when you’ve got a group and a squad like we have who are so willing to get stuck in, always seeing the positives, want to jump on board and get involved in as much as possible.”
December’s fixtures will be England’s first games back on home turf since winning silver at the Netball World Cup over the summer, where they fell to a 61-45 defeat against Australia in the final.
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Williams played a pivotal part in the tournament, providing a vital interception in the dying minutes of their semi-final against reigning champions New Zealand and reflected on a “history-making moment” reaching the final.
“I think at the time and in that moment of the final it was obviously devastating,” Williams said.
“To lose against Australia particularly when – bearing in mind it was a tight game – we’d beaten them only a few days before.
“However, when I look back now, I have nothing but pride for the way we performed this summer as a Roses squad. Not just players but all the staff and the journey we’d been on to reaching that historic final and getting our first-ever silver medal at a Netball World Cup, it was still a history-making moment.
“Not just the final result but also the memories I have with that team. Not just in the prep camp before, but the years before leading to us being able to do that is what I’ll take away from the experience the most.
“It’s so exciting to see where we could end up in four years’ time. Now I’ve got that springboard and motivation from being that close in the summer to really want to go for it those next four years.”
There are plenty of new faces in the Roses squad for the South Africa series with five players preparing to make their home international debuts and Williams was looking forward to the “new opportunities ahead”.
She added: “We’ve got a fresh-looking squad, new opportunities lying ahead and whilst it’s so important we carry those stories and lessons learned from the summer and make sure we’re all on the same page and everyone – even if you weren’t there – gets to learn from what worked well in the summer to get to that point and what we could do better to get us over the line in that final in four years’ time.
“There’s also the opportunity to create our own memories and our own history with a new squad.”
On this day in 2019: Bob Willis dies at age of 70
Former England captain and cricket pundit Bob Willis died on December 4, 2019 at the age of 70.
The pace bowler, who had been diagnosed with prostate cancer three years previously, played 90 Tests for England and had been a popular figure in broadcasting following his retirement in 1984.
Willis’ family said in a statement: “We are heartbroken to lose our beloved Bob, who was an incredible husband, father, brother and grandfather. He made a huge impact on everybody he knew and we will miss him terribly.”
Willis’ most famous moment as a player came in the 1981 Ashes series as his eight for 43 fired England to a remarkable win in the third Test at Headingley.
He is England’s fourth highest Test wicket-taker of all time with 325 wickets.
The England and Wales Cricket Board said in a statement that cricket had lost “a dear friend”.
“The ECB is deeply saddened to say farewell to Bob Willis, a legend of English cricket,” the statement read.
“He will always be remembered for his outstanding cricket career. In later years as a broadcaster Bob was a perceptive and respected voice at the microphone. We are forever thankful for everything he has done for the game.
“Everyone at the ECB sends sincere condolences to his family. Cricket has lost a dear friend.”
Willis’ former team-mate Paul Allott told Sky Sports News: “I was there when Bob passed away with Lauren, his wife, and daughter in Wimbledon. It was a peaceful passing but it was obviously a hugely emotional moment.
“We’ve known each other for more than 40 years. Beneath that quite stern exterior that he portrayed on Sky Sports there was a heart of gold.
“He was an extremely kind and gentle individual and we became the very best of friends.”
The Bob Willis Trophy was contested in 2020 and 2021 in his honour and is now presented to England’s player of the year at the Cricket Writers’ Club awards.
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