Bangladesh Emerging Team vs Ireland A game called off after player tests positive for Covid-19

Ruhan Pretorius, the player in question, was on the field as part of the Irish team’s playing XI

The iirst one-day match between Bangladesh Emerging Team and Ireland Wolves had to be abandoned after 30 overs of action in Chattogram on Friday when a positive Covid-19 test report came in for allrounder Ruhan Pretorius, who was on the field as part of the Irish XI. The 30-year-old Pretorius had been tested on Thursday.

BCB’s chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said that there was no option but to call off the match because of the timing of the test report, and confirmed that the other members of the two sides would be tested again before the next one-dayer, scheduled for Sunday.

“We follow the protocol of taking the individual into isolation as soon as he is found positive,” Chowdhury explained. “The report [for Pretorius] arrived slightly later in the morning, which left us with no choice. Our next step is to test everyone before the next game.”

The match, which was being aired on the BCB’s official YouTube channel, stopped abruptly at the end of the 30th over of the first innings – the local side was 122 for 4 at that stage – with the umpires seemingly informing the batsmen of the development even as the Ireland fielders walked off the field. The details emerged later, as well as the confirmation that the Ireland players had decided not to complete the game once they came to know of Pretorius’ test result.

ESPNcricinfo has learnt that the Ireland team management had initially considered using a replacement player, but later decided to leave the field. And while it is not clear at what point the Ireland fielders were informed of the situation – and whether he left the field immediately – there were discussions about the possible replacement as early as during the first drinks break.

Ireland Wolves have already played their only four-day game of the tour, and this was the first of the five-match one-day series against Bangladesh Emerging Team, with the next matches slotted for March 7, 9, 12 and 14. The two sides are also scheduled to play two T20s on March 17 and 18.

More to follow…