The Papua New Guinea women's cricket team have withdrawn from the World Cup qualifying tournament in Zimbabwe after several squad members tested positive for Covid-19.
The PNG Lewas had not played international cricket for two years. Photo: Twitter/T20 World Cup
The Lewas had been scheduled to open their campaign against the West Indies in Harare on November 21 but the squad will now miss the tournament all together.
The 50-over squad entered quarantine in Port Moresby on October 30 and had been due to fly out to Zimbabwe a week later but were unable to fulfil their commitments.
In a statement, Cricket PNG said multiple PCR tests were taken on nearly a daily basis to give players the opportunity to test negative.
"We have also over the weekend worked with the ICC on later flight options to give the team more time to still be able to tour. Unfortunately, all the extra efforts to get the team to travel have been unsuccessful."
The PNG Lewas have gone two years without international competition because of the global pandemic and had planned to enter Zimbabwe early to help the squad acclimatise prior to the World Cup Qualifiers.
Despite the entire squad being fully vaccinated, Cricket PNG said "Covid has robbed us of the opportunity to play international cricket once again."
"The Board, management, staff and players are all devastated at this turn of events. Months of hard work have gone into this tour, and to be robbed by Covid before we could leave is hard to accept.
"Covid is in the community in PNG and despite putting in best practices, including vaccinations and quarantining players seven days early, it wasn't enough on this occasion.
"Our only comfort is that all the players and support staff who have tested positive, due to being vaccinated, have had only mild or no symptoms."
PNG taking on Vanuatu in pre Covid times. Photo: ICC East Asia Pacific
Cricket PNG said it encouraged all of PNG to get vaccinated so the country can get in control of Covid-19.
The ICC said Papua New Guinea would not be replaced in Group A, which includes Sri Lanka, Ireland, Netherlands and West Indies.
Pakistan, Bangladesh, Thailand, Zimbabwe and the United States are in Group B.
Three teams from the qualifying tournament will join New Zealand, Australia, England, South Africa and India at the 2022 World Cup in March and April in New Zealand.