BBL 2021-22: Melbourne Stars skipper Glenn Maxwell tested positive for COVID-19 – Glenn Maxwell was reported to be have returned a positive quick antigen test following their Melbourne derby against with the Renegades on Monday (January 3), and is currently waiting for results of a PCR test on Wednesday (January 5).
The Melbourne Stars’ season in the ongoing Big Bash League (BBL) 2021-22 has taken a turn for the worse after their skipper Glenn Maxwell tested positive for COVID-19. Maxwell is the 13th member of the Melbourne Stars to test positive.
Maxwell was reported to have returned a positive fast antigen test following the Melbourne derby against the Renegades on Monday (January 3), and is now awaiting the results of a PCR test on Wednesday (January 5).
BBL 2021-22: Melbourne Stars skipper Glenn Maxwell tested positive for COVID-19
#MelbourneStars have confirmed captain #GlennMaxwell has returned a positive rapid antigen test for #Covid19.#BBL11 pic.twitter.com/rp9GDUJFzH
— CricTelegraph (@CricTelegraph) January 5, 2022
Due to the COVID-19 breakout, the Stars were obliged to rely on club cricketers rather than state-contracted players to field a team for games against the Perth Scorchers (on Sunday) and the Renegades on successive days.
Another setback came when Tom Rogers, a renowned Premier Cricket talent who impressed on debut against the Scorchers, tested positive, as did Joe Clarke, the man he started the batting with.
The mandatory seven-day isolation period for most Stars players who contracted the virus during the initial outbreak will finish in the coming days, which means Adam Zampa, Marcus Stoinis, and Nathan Coulter-Nile will be able to play in their next match against the Adelaide Strikers on Friday.
That is assuming that the players have not only been cleared of the illness, but are also fit and able to perform at match intensity after a week in isolation. Hilton Cartwright, one of the few prominent Stars players who has avoided contracting COVID, admits the outbreak has been a huge mental burden.
“I’ve never felt more vulnerable to a virus in my life, and I had no idea how much it would influence my emotional condition,” Cartwright told cricket.com.au.