Wellington Firebirds declared champions after NZC cancel Plunket Shield amid COVID-19 scare

SportsCafe Desk

BySportsCafe Desk, SportsCafe Editor

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As a precaution against coronavirus, NZC has cancelled the last two rounds of the Plunket Shield and declared Wellington Firebirds the winner. NZC has stated the concerns about 'the heightened risk of transmission in areas such as airports, planes, and hotels' forced them to take the decision.

The world is in a complete lockdown mode and starting from IT sectors to the sporting industry, everything has been put in a spot. It is only fitting that the sporting events, if there is any pending, stop immediately and NZC took the decision of cancelling the last two rounds of the Plunket Shield. However, unlike Sheffield Shield in Australia, NZC didn't wait further rather declared Wellington Firebirds, who were 26 points ahead of their nearest challenger, the Central Stags, the winner of this season.

"The strong consensus within NZC is that extra measures need to be taken to safeguard both the health and well-being of the New Zealand cricket family and the wider public interest. The medical advice we're receiving is that we need to take a lead on this matter," NZ Cricket chief executive David White said, reported stuff.co.nz.

"We're informed the risk is very real; the pace of change is great – and we have a duty of care to not only our staff and players but our communities as well."

In the statement released by the NZ Cricket, White said the decision had not been taken because of concerns around mass gatherings, but rather because of concerns about "the heightened risk of transmission in areas such as airports, planes, and hotels".

"The current advice is that there is no reason why community cricket should not continue unless, or until, there is new information to hand," White said.

Apart from that, White also revealed that NZ Cricket also postponed its annual awards, which were set to be held on March 30 in Auckland. That will now happen on a later date.

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