Cricket Australia has confirmed the fifth and final Ashes Test this summer will not be played in Western Australia – and that the schedule will not be changed to allow the state to snap up the second Test, after the WA government boldly made that request.
It means Perth will completely miss out on an Ashes Test this series, putting Bellerive Oval in Hobart as the frontrunner to be added to the schedule as the new venue for the fifth Test.
The CA announcement ends weeks of speculation about whether Perth’s Optus Stadium will be able to host a Test or not.
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The WA government’s strict quarantine rules made it impossible to take a match there.
Last week the state’s premier, Mark McGowan, confirmed he would make no exceptions for travelling players, their families, or broadcast staff, and that anyone arriving in WA would need to quarantine for two weeks.
With the fifth Test scheduled to begin just five days after the fourth match finishes in Sydney, McGowan’s stubborn stance made it logistically impossible to manage.
The western state made an audacious suggestion to move the second Test to Perth, away from Adelaide which is currently dealing with an outbreak of COVID-19.
That suggestion was largely ridiculed and scoffed at given McGowan’s refusal to play ball in the first place.
Now CA must assess the options for the fifth Test.
Tasmania currently does not have an Ashes match this summer, and has put its hand up to host one in Hobart.
Test legend Shane Warne suggested the Melbourne Cricket Ground host two matches, adding the fifth Test on top of the Boxing Day fixture a fortnight earlier.
The other obvious option on the table would be the nation’s capital, Canberra, where Manuka Oval has been snubbed for any international cricket this summer.
“We are very disappointed that we are unable to stage the fifth men’s Ashes Test at Optus Stadium,” Cricket Australia boss Nick Hockley said.
“We did everything we could in partnership with the WA government and WA cricket to make it work under the current border and health arrangements, but unfortunately this was not possible.
“We are particularly disappointed for Western Australian cricket fans who were so looking forward to seeing the first ever Ashes Test at the new stadium.”
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