Earlier this week, Namibia and Oman met in the first two ODIs of the series.
Oman and the United Arab Emirates cricket teams are set to fly back home, before the scheduled date from Windhoek.
The concerns regarding the sudden emergence of the new Coronavirus variant, Omicron is increasing. This has once again led to the implementation of travel restrictions by many countries on passengers coming from Southern Africa.
Due to the rising concern of the Omicron strain, the remaining matches of the CWC League 2 trilateral series are postponed.
On Friday, the United Arab Emirates announced the postponement of incoming flights from Southern African countries. They have also laid restrictions on the entry of travellers coming via Zimbabwe, Namibia, South Africa, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Eswatini, or Mozambique. The UAE is taking full precautions to stop the new strain from spreading.
The Omicron strain was first found in South Africa. This has caused many countries to restrict travelling to and from South Africa.
Similar restrictions have been imposed by the USA and the UK as well. Even the European Union are on the same page with the countries that have restricted travelling to and from South Africa. Even the ongoing Women’s World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe is planned to be cancelled.
The remaining games of the CWC Super League series against South Africa is also postponed due to the increasing concerns.
As per reports, Emirati and Omani teams will be sharing their flight with the team members of the Women’s Qualifier in Harare. The flights are chartered by the ICC. Meanwhile, the Dutch are still in Pretoria waiting to return to their country.
At the beginning of this week, Namibia and Oman met in the first two ODIs of the series. These were the additional matches that were set to replace the ones that were cancelled because of the death of Sultan Qaboos bin Said, two years back. This series was the last League 2 fixtures for the UAE, who haven’t yet got the chance to play on this tour.
To date, only 7 out of the 21 matches have been played. The League resumed in August 2019. According to the plan, fourteen trilateral series needs to be completed before the arrival of the 2023 World Cup Qualifier. Based on the ongoing situation, it appears to be impossible for the League to be completed within time.
As of now, no further announcements has been made. The matches are postponed keeping everyone’s safety in mind. The two teams have already been sent to their home countries.
Since the emergence of Coronavirus, the League competitions have been affected significantly. As things were returning to normal, once again there is a new strain. With each day the concerns regarding Omicron is increasing. In such a situation, it is difficult to say guess what’s going to happen next.
Oman and Namibia teams are returning early. The same is the case with other teams.
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